GNIS

The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the United States government's official repository of standardized geographic names. Managed by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN), GNIS consolidates names for natural features and cultural features across the United States and its territories.

Entries in GNIS include official names, feature types (such as mountain, lake, city, or river), precise coordinates, elevation, the map on which the feature appears, and a unique GNIS Feature ID. The database also records historical or variant names and related metadata, along with dates of entry or modification. Features are organized by state and county and linked to their corresponding topographic maps.

GNIS is publicly accessible online and is distributed as downloadable data files. It serves as the federal standard for geographic nomenclature and is widely used by government agencies, researchers, educators, cartographers, and emergency responders for mapping, geocoding, and ensuring consistent place names across datasets.

While comprehensive, GNIS focuses on official and widely recognized names; it is maintained through ongoing input from federal, state, and local authorities and subject to name-change decisions by the BGN. The data are in the public domain and freely reusable.