MAPS & LOCATIONS

INTRODUCTIONImagine how hard it would be to tell in

words the exact location of all the streets & buildings in your town. It would be simpler

to make a picture or diagram of the location of such objects. A map shows us

the way to reach our destination.It is a drawing of a neighbourhood, a city, a country or even a continent according to

scale.

SKETCH.

A sketch is a rough map of a place . Some important landmarks on the sketch help to find the way easily.

A landmark is a place or thing that you can easily recognise . It could be a temple, hospital, school or cinema hall.

A map without a scale is a SKETCH. Maps are always drawn according to some scale.

LANGUAGE OF A MAPDifferent types of information are shown on a map. It needs to have a language. The language of a map remains the same all over the world. It is made up of :-1. Directions

2. Colours

3. Signs & symbols 4. Scale

DIRECTIONSMaps are generally shown with north at top. Some maps, however, indicate north & south with an arrow. When we are facing north our left side indicates west & our right side shows east. The four major directions are North, South, East & West.Maps also follow the same system of directions.

SCALEWe cannot make maps showing the

actual sizes of places. So scale is used to represent actual distances on the earth.SCALE is the ratio between the map distance & the ground distance.Maps are always drawn according to some scale. A map without a scale is a SKETCH.If on a map, the scale states that 1 cm is equal to 100km, it means on that particular map 1cm. on the map is equal to 100km . on the earth.

COLOURS

Generally, maps follow a common scheme of colours.Water bodies such as oceans, seas,

lakes & rivers are always shown in different shades of blue . Light blue colour shows shallow water & deeper water .

Green on a map shows plain areas or lowland .

Highlands & mountains are shown in varying shades of yellow & brown . Snow-covered areas are shown in white.

SIGNS & SYMBOLS

The symbol & colours used in the maps are universal i.e. the same set of symbols & colours are used all over the world. So they are called CONVECTIONAL SYMBOLS. In every map a key or legend is given which helps us to understand the meaning of signs & symbols used in that used in that particular map.

A symbol is a sign representing a landmark. different landmarks have different symbols.The explanation of symbols is called a KEY.

MAPSA map is a drawing of the earth on a flat surface like paper, cardboard or wood etc. It can be folded, rolled,& even put in a book . Maps can be drawn to show the whole world or even a very small part of it. Maps may be of countries, continents, cities or even of a neighbourhood . You can also make a map of your house & show all the details of it.Though a globe is very useful for studying about the earth, as it is a true model of the earth, it has certain limitations.

ADVANTAGES OF MAPS1. With the help of a map you can easily

locate the political boundary of a country.

2. Through a map, you can easily show the courses of rivers, roads, railways, waterways,& airways.

3. Distribution of rainfall, forests, minerals, crops, population , climate, industries etc. are seen easily on maps.

4. You can easily locate cities, hills, mountains, plains, plateaus, valleys, etc on a map.

5. You can carry a map very easily.

TYPES OF MAPSThere are many types of maps, some of which are as follows:-

I. Political Maps II. Physical Maps

III. Thematic Maps

Political MapsMaps showing

different continents, countries, states,

cities, towns etc. in any given area are

called Political Maps.

PHYSICAL MAPSThose maps which

show physical features such as mountains, rivers,

plains, etc. which are called Physical

Maps.

THEMATIC MAPSThe maps which focus on specific

information of the regions are called Thematic Maps.

a) Some maps shown rainfall in different areas. They are called

rainfall maps.b) Some maps show population in

different areas. They are called population maps.

c) Some maps show crops grown in different parts of the given

area. They are called crop grown maps.

OUR NEIGHBORING

COUNTRIES

GLOBEA globe is a ball shaped object with a map of the world on it. It is usually fixed on a stand.A globe, being spherical , serves as good model to help us to visualize the earth & its surface. A major part of the earth is under water.

The large water bodies are called OCEANS . The five major oceans on the earth are the PACIFIC OCEAN, the ATLANTIC OCEAN, the INDIAN OCEAN, the SOUTHERN OCEAN & the ARCTIC OCEAN.

CONTINENTS

Continents are major land masses on earth .

LIMITATIONS OF A GLOBE1. A globe occupies a lot of space.

2. It is not easy to carry a globe from one place to another.

3. It cannot show detailed information.

Because of these limitations a map is drawn on a flat surface. A map can overcome all these shortcomings.

In comparison to a globe, map give more specific & detailed information . Maps show location & features like types of land, natural resources, agricultural & industrial resources, climate, population, distribution, places of tourist interest, roadways & railways routes etc. We can even enlarge the features of a small area & show them clearly on a map. A book which contains maps is called an ATLAS .

COMPARISON BETWEEN GLOBES &

MAPS

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