Portal:Maps

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The Maps and Cartography Portal

World map by Gerard van Schagen, Amsterdam, 1689

A map is a symbolic depiction emphasizing relationships between elements of some space, such as objects, regions, or themes.

Many maps are static, fixed to paper or some other durable medium, while others are dynamic or interactive. Although most commonly used to depict geography, maps may represent any space, real or fictional, without regard to context or scale, such as in brain mapping, DNA mapping, or computer network topology mapping. The space being mapped may be two dimensional, such as the surface of the Earth, three dimensional, such as the interior of the Earth, or even more abstract spaces of any dimension, such as arise in modeling phenomena having many independent variables.

Although the earliest maps known are of the heavens, geographic maps of territory have a very long tradition and exist from ancient times. The word "map" comes from the medieval Latin: Mappa mundi, wherein mappa meant 'napkin' or 'cloth' and mundi 'the world'. Thus, "map" became a shortened term referring to a two-dimensional representation of the surface of the world. (Full article...)

Cartography (/kɑːrˈtɒɡrəfi/; from Ancient Greek: χάρτης chartēs, 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and γράφειν graphein, 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively. (Full article...)

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The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a satellite-based radio navigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide geolocation and time information to a GPS receiver anywhere on or near the Earth where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites. It does not require the user to transmit any data, and operates independently of any telephonic or Internet reception, though these technologies can enhance the usefulness of the GPS positioning information. It provides critical positioning capabilities to military, civil, and commercial users around the world. Although the United States government created, controls and maintains the GPS system, it is freely accessible to anyone with a GPS receiver. (Full article...)
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Joyce Kozloff (born 1942) is an American artist known for her paintings, murals, and public art installations. She was one of the original members of the Pattern and Decoration movement and an early artist in the 1970s feminist art movement, including as a founding member of the Heresies collective.

She has been active in the women's and peace movements throughout her life. Since the early 1990s, her work has drawn extensively on cartography and patterns. (Full article...)

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Iberian Peninsula map
Iberian Peninsula map
Credit: Robert Wilkinson
18th century hand-coloured engraved map of the Iberian peninsula depicting various topographical features of the land, as published in Robert Wilkinson's General Atlas, circa 1794.

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Map examples

World

Reversed map
Reversed map
Credit: Henry Bottomley
A reversed map, challenging the tradition of north as "up".

Historical

Early map of North America
Early map of North America
Credit: Claude Bernou, David.Monniaux
Map of North America during the 17th century.

Thematic

Ancient Greek colonies on the Black Sea
Ancient Greek colonies on the Black Sea
Credit: MapMaster
Ancient Greek colonies on the northern coast of the Black Sea.

Geographic

The Russian Empire in 1912
The Russian Empire in 1912
Credit: Library of Congress
The Russian Empire in 1912, showing land heights, water depths and railroads.

Political

The territorial extent of the Egyptian Empire
The territorial extent of the Egyptian Empire
Credit: ArdadN
The maximum territorial extent of the Egyptian Empire (15th century BC).

Nautical

The Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico
Credit: NOAA
The Gulf of Mexico in 3D perspective using a GIS.

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Atlases and maps of the world at Wikimedia Commons

Extended content
Wikimedia Commons includes the Wikimedia Atlas of the World.


Entries available in the atlas


General pages
commons:Atlascommons:Historical atlas - Index of the Atlas - Names in native languages


The world and its continents and oceans
General maps of the world - Historical maps of the world - Old maps - Africa - North and South America - Antarctica - Asia - Europe (History, European Union) - Oceania - Oceans


Historical era and themes
Prehistory - Antiquity - Middle Ages - Age of Renaissance - Early Modern Age - 20th Century - Early Asian Societies - Rise of Islam - Early American Societies - Colonialism - World War I - World War II


Countries with undisputed status
Afghanistan - Albania - Algeria - Andorra - Angola - Antigua and Barbuda - Argentina - Armenia - Australia - Austria - Azerbaijan - Bahamas - Bahrain - Bangladesh - Barbados - Belarus - Belgium - Belize - Benin - Bhutan - Bolivia - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Botswana - Brazil - Brunei - Bulgaria - Burkina Faso - Burundi - Cambodia - Cameroon - Canada - Cape Verde - Central African Republic - Chad - Chile - China - Colombia - Comoros - Democratic Republic of the Congo - Republic of the Congo - Costa Rica - Côte d'Ivoire - Croatia - Cuba - Cyprus - Czech Republic - Denmark - Djibouti - Dominica - Dominican Republic - East Timor - Ecuador - Egypt - El Salvador - Equatorial Guinea - Eritrea - Estonia - Eswatini - Ethiopia - Fiji - Finland - France - Gabon - The Gambia - Georgia - Germany - Ghana - Greece - Grenada - Guatemala - Guinea - Guinea-Bissau - Guyana - Haiti - Honduras - Hungary - Iceland - India - Indonesia - Iran - Iraq - Ireland - Israel - Italy - Jamaica - Japan - Jordan - Kazakhstan - Kenya - Kiribati - North Korea - South Korea - Kuwait - Kyrgyzstan - Laos - Latvia - Lebanon - Lesotho - Liberia - Libya - Liechtenstein - Lithuania - Luxembourg - North Macedonia - Madagascar - Malawi - Malaysia - Maldives - Mali - Malta - Marshall Islands - Mauritania - Mauritius - Mexico - Federated States of Micronesia - Moldova - Monaco - Mongolia - Montenegro - Morocco - Mozambique - Myanmar - Namibia - Nauru - Nepal - The Netherlands - New Zealand - Nicaragua - Niger - Nigeria - Norway - Oman - Pakistan - Palau - Panama - Papua New Guinea - Paraguay - Peru - Philippines - Poland - Portugal - Qatar - Romania - Russia - Rwanda - Saint Kitts and Nevis - Saint Lucia - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines - Samoa - San Marino - São Tomé and Príncipe - Saudi Arabia - Senegal - Serbia - Seychelles - Sierra Leone - Singapore - Slovakia - Slovenia - Solomon Islands - Somalia - South Africa - Spain - Sri Lanka - Sudan - Suriname - Sweden - Switzerland - Syria - Tajikistan - Tanzania - Thailand - Togo - Tonga - Trinidad and Tobago - Tunisia - Turkey - Turkmenistan - Tuvalu - Uganda - Ukraine - United Arab Emirates - United Kingdom - United States - Uruguay - Uzbekistan - Vanuatu - Vatican City - Venezuela - Vietnam - Yemen - Zambia - Zimbabwe


Countries with disputed status
Abkhazia - Artsakh - Republic of China / Taiwan - Kosovo - Northern Cyprus - Palestine - Somaliland - South Ossetia - Tamil Eelam - Transnistria - Western Sahara


Dependencies and other overseas territories
Akrotiri and Dhekelia - Åland- American Samoa- Anguilla - Aruba - Ascension Island - Ashmore and Cartier Islands - Baker Island- Bermuda - Bouvet Island - British Indian Ocean Territory - British Virgin Islands - Cayman Islands - Christmas Island - Clipperton Island - Cocos (Keeling) Islands - Cook Islands - Coral Sea Islands - Falkland Islands - Faroe Islands - French Guiana - French Polynesia - French Southern and Antarctic Lands - Gibraltar - Greenland - Guadeloupe - Guam - Guantanamo Bay - Guernsey - Heard Island and McDonald Islands - Hong Kong - Howland Island - Isle of Man - Jan Mayen - Jarvis Island - Jersey - Johnston Atoll - Kingman Reef - Macau - Martinique - Mayotte - Midway Atoll - Montserrat - Navassa Island - Netherlands Antilles - New Caledonia - Niue - Norfolk Island - Northern Mariana Islands - Palmyra Atoll - Pitcairn Islands - Puerto Rico - Réunion - Saint Helena - Saint-Barthélemy - Saint Martin (French) - Saint-Pierre and Miquelon - South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands - Svalbard - Tokelau - Tristan da Cunha - Turks and Caicos Islands - United States Virgin Islands - Wake Island - Wallis and Futuna


Disputed areas
Kashmir - Paracel Islands - Spratly Islands


Subnational autonomous entities
Aceh - Adjara - Adygea - Altai - Andalusia - Aosta Valley - Athos - Azores - Balearic Islands - Bashkortostan - Basque Country - Bougainville - Brussels - Buryatia - Canary Islands - Catalonia - Chechnya - Chuvashia - Corsica - Crimea - Curaçao - Dagestan - Easter Island - England - Bosnia and Herzegovina (Federation) - Flanders - Friuli-Venezia Giulia - Gagauzia - Galicia - Galápagos Islands - Gorno-Badakhshan - Guangxi - Ingushetia - Inner Mongolia - Kabardino-Balkaria - Kalmykia - Karachay-Cherkessia - Karakalpakstan - Karelia - Khakassia - Komi - Kurdistan (Iraqi) - Madeira - Mari El - Mordovia - Mindanao - Nakhchivan - Navarre - Nevis - Ningxia -North Ossetuia-Alania - Northern Ireland - Quebec - Saint Martin (Dutch) - Sakha - Sardinia - Scotland - Sicily - Srpska - Tatarstan - Tibet - Trentino-Alto Adige - Tuva - Udmurtia - Vojvodina - Wales - Wallonia - Xinjiang - Zanzibar


Former countries
Austria-Hungary - Byzantine Empire - Caliphate - Czechoslovakia - Frankish Empire - Inca Empire - Macedonian Empire - Roman Empire - Soviet Union - Yugoslavia


Themes
International organizations - Languages - Religions


Old atlas
Stielers Handatlas 1891

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