Kartdictionaries

Kartdictionaries are a class of digital lexical resources designed to support cartography and geographic information systems by compiling and aligning map-related terms across languages and dialects. They cover terminology from cartography, geodesy, hydrology, topography, map design, and GIS metadata, providing definitions, part of speech, etymology, usage notes, and multilingual translations. Entries typically link concepts such as projection, scale, legend, and symbol to their cross-language equivalents and to related terms.

Scope and structure

Entries in kartdictionaries are organized with fields such as term, language, sense, relationships to related terms, synonyms, and translations. Many projects adopt standard metadata and encoding practices, and they may align with ontologies or controlled vocabularies used in geospatial work. Common formats include SKOS-based concept schemes, as well as JSON-LD or XML representations, enabling easy integration with GIS software and language resources.

Development and use

Kartdictionaries are typically developed from multiple sources, including cartographic manuals, geospatial metadata standards, literature, and domain expert input. Crowdsourcing and expert curation are common methods to maintain accuracy and coverage. They serve translation and localization for cartography and GIS, support educational programs, and aid researchers in cross-language map production, documentation, and metadata tagging.

Challenges and governance

Key challenges include terminological drift across disciplines and languages, regional and dialectal variations, polysemy, and alignment with evolving standards. Keeping licensing clear and ensuring interoperability across platforms are ongoing concerns.

See also

Cartography, geographic information systems, lexicography, controlled vocabulary, SKOS, ontology, toponymy.