topographia

Topographia, in its broad sense, is the description and mapping of the surface features of a place. The word derives from Greek topos, place, and graphein, to write, and entered Latin as topographia before becoming the basis for the modern terms topography and topographic.

In geography and cartography, topography refers to the arrangement and depiction of natural features such as terrain, rivers, coastlines, and the layout of human-made features like settlements, roads, and boundaries. A core product is the topographic map, which represents elevation and relief through contour lines, shading, or color relief. Modern topographic work combines field surveys with remote sensing data—satellite imagery and LiDAR—and geographic information systems to produce digital elevation models and layered maps.

Historically, topography also described places in travel literature and became a technical discipline within surveying and mapping during the early modern period. The tradition includes the compilation of regional descriptions that accompany maps and architectural drawings, reflecting a descriptive approach to landscapes and spaces.

Today topography remains central in geology, earth sciences, urban planning, architecture, and navigation. The term is related to but distinct from topology, a branch of mathematics concerned with properties preserved under continuous deformations. In atlas making and regional description, topographia has appeared as a title for works that combine textual description with images to convey the character of a place.