This is true to a large extent in India. My childhood home address in a very small town was something like "person name, behind government hospital, town". Even in the cities, depending on the city, it is usually a combination of number and cross streets (e.g. #50, 5th Main, 6th cross). If you aren't familiar with the area, there are ten different 5th mains and it is always a bit of a crap shoot finding the right one.