Cartographic Terminology

[RobA]

Honestly, this is more the kind of thing I was hoping to find in this thread. I'd also like to find more foreign terms with definitions, such as gebirge, erg, wadi, etc...

Well, you can't beat Wikipedia for that... convenient organized into the following categories:

• 1.1 Coastal and oceanic landforms
• 1.2 Erosion landforms
• 1.3 Fluvial landforms
• 1.4 Mountain and glacial landforms
• 1.5 Slope landforms
• 1.6 Volcanic landforms
• 1.7 Deposition landform

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landform

-Rob A>

[Midgardsormr]

Bathymetry: The underwater counterpart to topography. The representation of ocean depth on a map.

[su_liam]

Gebirge - (German) mountains, mountain range
Erg - (Arabic) dune, sandy desert
Hamada - (Arabic) rocky plateau
Chott - (Arabic) salt lake
Djebel - (Arabic) mountain
Nahr - (Arabic) river
Oued - (Arabic) river
Sahara - (Arabic) desert, plain
Sebkha - (Arabic) salt marsh

There's a start.

[Midgardsormr]

Inset: Some maps feature an enlargement of an important area, such as a city or harbor, usually in an otherwise unused corner.

[ravells]

I can't believe there is a word for this:

hachures


/hashyoorz/
• plural noun parallel lines used on maps to shade in hills, their closeness indicating steepness of gradient.
— DERIVATIVES hachured adjective. — ORIGIN French, from hacher (see HATCH3).

[Arkkeeper]

Just to reiterate what we all already know but still should have in the list:

Compass: symbol which represents the the orientation of the map and the direction of north, south, east, and west.

Latitude: Distance Measuring lines going North and South

Longitude: Distance Measuring lines going East and West "Remember when a map has North up, The Longitude lines are long

Key: A box that gives definitions of the symbols used on the map

Scale: The size of the map relative to the actual area the map is displaying.

and here a buttload of a list I found (note: some of these might not apply or have already been listed, it was too big to really go through):

accuracy
Degree of conformity with a standard. Accuracy relates to the quality of a result and is distinguished from precision which relates to the quality of the operation by which the result is obtained.

adjustment
Process designed to remove inconsistencies in measured or computed quantities by applying derived corrections to compensate for random or accidental errors.

adjustment, land- line
Positioning land lines on a map to indicate their true, theoretical, or approximate location relative to the adjacent terrain and culture, by reconciling the information shown on Bureau of Land Management plats and field records with the ground evidence of the location of the lines.

adjustment, standard accuracy
Adjustment of a survey resulting in values for positions and (or) elevations that comply with the National Map Accuracy Standards.

aerotriangulation
The process of developing a network of horizontal and or vertical positions from a group of known positions using direct or indirect measurements from aerial photographs and mathematical computations.

alidade
Instrument, or part of an instrument , for determining direction , either horizontal or vertical . In its simplest form, a peepsight or telescope mounted on a straightedge and used for plotting directions graphically. In such instruments as transits and theodolites, the alidade is the part containing the telescope and its attachments.

altimeter
Instrument for measuring altitudes or elevations with respect to a reference level, usually mean sea level. The most common type is an aneroid barometer. A radar altimeter determines the height of an aircraft above the terrain by measuring the time required for an electromagnetic pulse to travel from aircraft to the ground and back.

azimuth
Horizontal direction reckoned clockwise from the meridian plane.

backshore
Part of a beach that is usually dry and is reached only by the highest tides; by extension, a narrow strip of relatively flat coast bordering the sea.

base map
See: map, base.

bathymetric map
See: map, bathymetric

bathymetry
Science of measuring water depths (usually in the ocean) to determine bottom topography.

beach (seabeach)
Zone of unconsolidated material that extends landward from the low water line to the place where there is marked change in material or physiographic form, or to the line of permanent vegetation (usually the effective lint of storm waves).

bench mark
Relatively permanent material object, natural or artificial, bearing a marked point whose elevation above or below an adopted datum is known.

boundary monument
Material object placed on or near a boundary line to preserve and identify the location of the boundary line on the ground

boundary survey
Survey made to establish or to reestablish a boundary line on the ground, or to obtain data for constructing a map or plat showing a boundary line.

cadastral map
See: map, cadastral.

cadastral survey
Survey relating to land boundaries, made to create units suitable for title transfer or to define the limitations of title. Derived from "cadastre" meaning a register of land quantities, values, and ownership used levying taxes, the term may properly be applied to surveys of a similar nature outside the public lands, such surveys are more commonly called "land surveys" or "property surveys."

cartography
Science and art of making maps and charts. The term may be taken broadly as comprising all the steps needed to produce a map: planning, aerial photography, field surveys, photogrammetry, editing, color separation, and multicolor printing. Mapmakers, however, tend to limit use of the term to the map-finishing operations, in which the master manuscript is edited and color separation plates are prepared for lithographic printing.

chain
Unit of length equal to 66 feet, used especially in the U.S. public land surveys. The original measuring instrument (Gunter's chain) was literally a chain consisting of 100 iron links, each 7.92 inches long. Steel-ribbon tapes began to supersede chains around 1900, but surveying tapes are often still called "chains" and measuring with a tape is often called "chaining." The chain is a convenient unit in cadastral surveys because 10 square chains equal 1 acre.

chart
Special-purpose map designed for navigation or to present specific data or information. The term "chart" is applied chiefly to maps made primarily for nautical and aeronautical navigation, and to maps of the heavens, although the term is sometimes used to describe other special-purpose maps.

chart, aeronautical
Charts designed to meet requirements of aerial navigating, produced in several series, each on a specified map projection and differing in scale, format, and content, for use as dictated by type of aircraft and whether flight is to be conducted under visual or instrument flight rules.

chart, bathymetric
See: map, bathymetric

chart, nautical
Representation of a portion of the navigable waters of the Earth and adjacent coastal areas on a specified map projection and designed specifically to meet requirements for marine navigation. Included on most nautical charts are depths of water, characteristics of the bottom, elevations of selected topographic features, general configurations and characteristics of the coast, the shoreline (usually the mean high water line), dangers, obstructions and aids to navigation limited tidal data, and information about magnetic variation in the charted area.

choropleth map
See: map, choropleth

clinometric map:
See: map, slope

color separation
Process of preparing a separate drawing, engraving, or negative for each color required in the printing production of a map or chart.

compilation
Preparation of a new or revised map or chart, or portion thereof, from existing maps, aerial photographs, field surveys, and other sources.

continuous tone
Image not broken into dots by photographic screen; contains unbroken gradient tones from black to white, and may be either in negative or positive form. Aerial photographs are examples of continuous-tone prints. Contrasted with halftone (screened) and line copy.

contour
Imaginary line on ground, all points of which are at the same elevation above or below a specific datum.

contour interval
Difference in elevation between two adjacent contours.

control mapping
Points of established position or elevation, or both, which are used to fix references in positioning and correlating map features. Fundamental control is provided by stations in the national networks of triangulation and traverse (horizontal control) and leveling (vertical control). Usually it is necessary to extend geodetic surveys, based on fundamental stations, over the area to be mapped, to provide a suitable density and distribution of control points. Supplemental control points are those needed to relate the aerial photographs used for mapping with the system of ground control. These points must be positively photoidentified; that is, the points must be positively correlated with their images on the photographs.

control station
Point on the ground whose position (horizontal or vertical) is known and can be used as a base for additional survey work.

coordinates
Linear and (or) angular quantities that designate the position of a point in relation to a given reference frame.

coordinates, origin of
Points in a system of coordinates which serves as a zero point in computing the system's elements or in prescribing its use.

culture
Features constructed by man that are under, on, or above the ground which are delineated on a map. These include roads, trails, buildings, canals, sewer systems, and boundary lines. In a broad sense, the term also applies to all names, other identification, and legends on a map.

[Arkkeeper]

datum (pl. datums)
In surveying, a reference system for computing or correlating the results of surveys. There are tow principal types of datums: vertical and horizontal. A vertical datum is a level surface to which heights are referred. In the United States, the generally adopted vertical datum for leveling operations is the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929. The horizontal datum is used as a reference for position. The North American Datum of 1927 is defined by the latitude and longitude of an initial point (Meade's Ranch in Kansas), the direction of a line between this point and a specified second point, and two dimensions that define the spheroid. The new North American Datum of 1983 is based on a newly defined spheroid (GRS80); it is an Earth-centered datum having no initial point or initial direction.
datum, national geodetic vertical See: national geodetic vertical datum of 1929

declination
In astronomy, the angular distance of a celestial body above (north, plus) or below (south, minus) the celestial Equator. Magnetic declination is the angular difference between magnetic north and true (geographic) north at the point of observation; it is not constant but varies with time because of the "wandering" of the magnetic north pole.

depth curve
Line on a map or chart connecting points of equal depth below the datum.

diazo process
Rapid method for copying documents in which the image is developed by exposure to ammonia.

dike
Bank of earth or stone used to form a barrier, frequently and confusingly interchanged with levee. A dike restrains water within an area that normally is flooded. See levee.

electronic distance measuring (EDM) device:
Instruments that measure the phase difference between transmitted and reflected or retransmitted electromagnetic waves of known frequency, or that measure the round-trip transit time of a pulsed signal, from which distance is computed.

elevation
Vertical distance of a point above or below a reference surface or datum.

ellipsoid
See: spheroid

engineering map
See: map, engineering

ER-55 plotter
Double-projection plotting instrument utilizing ellipsoidal reflectors for light projection.

erosion
Group of natural processes including weathering, dissolution, abrasion, corrosion, and transportation that remove material from any part of the Earth's surface.

estuary
That portion of a stream influenced by the tide of the body of water into which it flows; an arm of the sea at a river mouth.

feature separation
Process of preparing a separate drawing, engraving, or negative for selected types of data in the preparation of a map or chart.

flood control map
See: map, flood control

flood plain
Belt of low flat ground bordering a stream channel that is flooded when runoff exceeds the capacity of the stream channel.

forestry map
See: map, forestry

formlines
Lines, resembling contour lines, drawn to present a conception of the shape of the terrain without regard to a true datum or regular spacing

geodesy
Science concerned with the measurement and mathematical description of the size and shape of the earth and its gravitational fields. Geodesy also includes the large-scale, extended surveys for determining positions and elevations of points, in which the size and shape of the earth must be taken into account.

geoid
Figure of the Earth visualized as a mean sea level surface extended continuously through the continents. It is a theoretically continuous surface that is perpendicular at every point to the direction of gravity (the plumbline).
geologic map
See: map, geologic

graticule
Network of parallels and meridians on a map or chart.

graticule, geographic
System of coordinates of latitude and longitude used to define the position of a point on the surface of the Earth with respect to the reference spheroid.

grid
Network of uniformly spaced parallel lines intersecting at right angles. When superimposed on a map, it usually carries the name of the projection used for the map- that is, Lambert grid, transverse Mercator grid, universal transverse Mercator grid.

[Karro]

Latitude: Distance Measuring lines going North and South

Longitude: Distance Measuring lines going East and West "Remember when a map has North up, The Longitude lines are long

These appear a bit confusing by these descriptions. Of course we all know what Latitude and Longitude are. For clarification:

Longitude: Lines of Longitude are drawn from the North Pole to the South Pole, and are arranged heading from east to west. Lines of Longitude are also sometimes referred to as Meridians. All lines of Longitude meet at the North and South Poles (though on some map projections they all appear to be parallel and usually equidistant throughout).

Latitude: Lines of Latitude run perpendicular to a north-oriented map, running from west to east. They are parallel lines based on the arc angle from the equator, and measure distance from the equator. Also, in primary school, you may have been taught to associate LATitude with FATitude to remind you of their orientation, or at least I was.

[cyfir]

Gebirge - (German) mountains, mountain range
Erg - (Arabic) dune, sandy desert
Hamada - (Arabic) rocky plateau
Chott - (Arabic) salt lake
Djebel - (Arabic) mountain
Nahr - (Arabic) river
Oued - (Arabic) river
Sahara - (Arabic) desert, plain
Sebkha - (Arabic) salt marsh

There's a start.

Some more Arabic topographical terms:
Buhiyra - Lake (Generally freshwater)
Bahr - Sea
Tal - Hill
Khalij - Gulf
Qanat - Canal

Administrative Terms:
Wilayat - State or Province
Balad - Region or County
Medina - City
Ruba' - Quarter (as in "foreign quarter")
Hayy - District

Those are just off the top of my head; if you have specific terms you'd like for a middle-eastern-themed map let me know.

[Midgardsormr]

Those are just off the top of my head; if you have specific terms you'd like for a middle-eastern-themed map let me know.

How about the cardinal directions? (North, South, East, West)
Fort or fortress
Forest
Road