Geographic Elements of Maps

Abstract

Geographic elements of maps are relief landforms, hydrographic objects, land and vegetation, settlements, various institutional and infrastructural objects, traffic communications, borders and geographic names and captions. For proper reading of maps, more elaborately presented are methods for cartographic representation of relief on maps through methods of contour lines, hachures, shadows, hypsometric belts and their combinations. Other geographic elements are presented through explanations of:

• ways of representing water surfaces, water streams and water objects on maps;

• concept, significance and classification of land and vegetation on maps and ways of cartographic representation on a map are shown accordingly;

• classification and cartographic representation of settlements on maps;

• significance, classification and cartographic representation of different types of objects on maps;

• significance, classification and cartographic representation of communications on maps;

• significance, classification and cartographic representation of borderlines on maps; and

• significance, classification, alphanumeric signs, orthography and abbreviations for names and captions on maps.

Ways of cartographic representation are presented which are basically reduced to a display of dotted, linear and surface objects through different colours and design. For example, brown colour for depicting relief, blue for hydrographic objects, green for vegetation, black for settlements and writings and various other colours for other objects. Knowing these principles and methods allows for a complete reading of maps and an immediate view of a world which is further away from our physical presence.