Introduction to Cartography GEOG 2016 E Lecture-1 Introduction and Overview

Basics We all tell people directions to somewhere. For example, we use the terms as two blocks south of the Parker building. Or about 100 meters north-west of the New Sudbury Center. Sometimes we sketch a map to illustrate the directions. In this respect, everyone is an amateur cartographer. However the science of cartography is much more than drawing maps for directions.

Importance of Cartography In cartography we represent geographic information in digital or analog forms. Digital: on computer Analog: on paper The question is, why do we want to represent geographic information? Why do we want to represent this information graphically?

Geographic Information What kind of geographic information we wish to represent on a map? Any information that is useful Location – longitude, latitude Elevation Attributes What are attributes? Vegetation Mineral resources Structures etc. etc.

Map of Sudbury

Modern Trends in Cartography The new trend is to move away from printed maps. Geographic information is now preferably stored in computer databases. This is highly advantageous since it allows: Manipulation and analysis of spatial data Develop remote sensing and GPS tracking systems Develop Geographic Information Systems Develop more visually informative maps

History of Cartography History of cartography is fairly old First recorded maps were of stars (ca. 4000 BCE) Babylonian civilization is known for its excellence in mathematics and astronomy They created world maps in as early as 6th Century BCE

Eratosthenes Greek mathematician, astronomer, geographer (276 BC – 195 BC) Is considered the father of modern cartography First person to use the word “geography” First person to calculate the circumference of the earth Introduced the idea of meridians and parallels

Map by Eratosthenes

Claudius Ptolemy Roman mathematician, astronomer and geographer (AD 90 – AD 168) Wrote Geographica – a compilation of world geography as it was known during his time Drew maps on coordinates based on latitude and longitude Also used lists and captions to describe map attributes

Map by Ptolemy

Maps in Other Cultures Maps can be found in all ancient cultures For example, China’s Han Dynasty in around 200 BCE created maps that had scales and directions Islamic geographers, such as al-Khwarizmi and Al-Idrisi wrote books and drew maps Al-Khwarizmi revised Ptolemy’s geography

Ancient Chinese Map

Map by Al-Idrisi