Cartography (/kɑːrˈtɒɡrəfi/; from 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.
Modern cartography constitutes many theoretical and practical foundations of geographic information systems (GIS) and geographic information science (GISc).
What is the earliest known map is a matter of some debate, both because the term "map" is not well-defined and because some artifacts that might be maps might actually be something else. A wall painting that might depict the ancient Anatolian city of Çatalhöyük (previously known as Catal Huyuk or Çatal Hüyük) has been dated to the late 7th millennium BCE.[1][2] Among the prehistoric alpine rock carvings of Mount Bego (France) and Valcamonica (Italy), dated to the 4th millennium BCE, geometric patterns consisting of dotted rectangles and lines are widely interpreted[3][4] in archaeological literature as a depiction of cultivated plots.[5] Other known maps of the ancient world include the Minoan "House of the Admiral" wall painting from c. 1600 BCE, showing a seaside community in an oblique perspective, and an engraved map of the holy Babylonian city of Nippur, from the Kassite period (14th – 12th centuries BCE).[6] The oldest surviving world maps are from 9th century BCE Babylonia.[7] One shows Babylon on the Euphrates, surrounded by Assyria, Urartu[8] and several cities, all, in turn, surrounded by a "bitter river" (Oceanus).[9] Another depicts Babylon as being north of the center of the world.[7]
The ancient Greeks and Romans created maps from the time of Anaximander in the 6th century BCE.[10] In the 2nd century CE, Ptolemy wrote his treatise on cartography, Geographia.[11] This contained Ptolemy's world map – the world then known to Western society (Ecumene). As early as the 8th century, Arab scholars were translating the works of the Greek geographers into Arabic.[12]
In ancient China, geographical literature dates to the 5th century BCE. The oldest extant Chinese maps come from the State of Qin, dated back to the 4th century BCE, during the Warring States period. In the book of the Xin Yi Xiang Fa Yao, published in 1092 by the Chinese scientist Su Song, a star map on the equidistant cylindrical projection.[13][14] Although this method of charting seems to have existed in China even before this publication and scientist, the greatest significance of the star maps by Su Song is that they represent the oldest existent star maps in printed form.
Early forms of cartography of India included depictions of the pole star and surrounding constellations.[15] These charts may have been used for navigation.[15]