If you go northward, you go towards the north. People use it after a verb of movement: the birds flew northward; we drove northward all morning. They also put it in front of a noun: a northward journey, a northward wind. It is a little more careful than just saying north or to the north, so it turns up in weather reports, news, and maps. American English likes northward. British English often says northwards for the “which way?” use. Though actually, when the word sits in front of a noun, the form without s is the usual one even in Britain: a northward path. And in everyday speech, north by itself is often enough: They headed north. Northward is the direction of travel, not a region with a border. Northern is the describing word for things that already sit in the north (a northern city).