Did Jesus' Star "arise," or was it "in the East"? (Matthew 2:2)

The traditional translation is that Jesus' star arose "in the East," but the primary meaning of the word is "rising." Of course, stars appear on the eastern horizon as the earth spins. Part of the reasoning for a translation, though, is tied up[in what you think the star was. Can a start point not only to Israel but to Bethlehem, and even to where Jesus was?