☰ Contents · Geography

Kinds of maps and topographic maps

Lessons 7–8 · 2 lessons · P. Gulomov, H. Vahobov, P. Baratov, M. Mamatqulov. Geography (Physical Geography of Central Asia; Physical Geography of Uzbekistan), Grade 7. Revised and expanded 5th edition. “O‘qituvchi” Publishing House, Tashkent, 2017
7

Kinds of maps and how to use them

Textbook: pp. 18–19
GoalDistinguish kinds of maps and atlases and find distances on a map using the scale.
New words
general geographic map · umumiy geografik xaritathematic map · mavzuli xaritaatlas · atlassmall-scale map · mayda masshtabli xarita
Explanation

By scale, maps are large-scale (1 : 10 000 to 1 : 200 000), medium-scale (1 : 200 000 to 1 : 1 000 000) and small-scale (smaller than 1 : 1 000 000). By content they are general geographic or thematic: a general geographic map shows relief, rivers, lakes, settlements, roads and borders with equal accuracy, while a thematic map shows one theme such as climate, soils or minerals. By purpose maps are scientific, educational, tourist and other kinds. An atlas is a collection of maps made by one programme that complement each other. To find a distance on a map, first find from the scale how many km 1 cm stands for, then measure the distance between two points in centimetres and multiply the two numbers.

Worked examples
If the scale is 1 : 1 000 000, 1 cm equals 10 km; if two towns are 6 cm apart on the map, the real distance is 6 × 10 = 60 km.
A climate map, a soil map and a minerals map are thematic maps, while a topographic map is a general geographic map.
Class activity

“Distance master”: each group picks two cities in the atlas and calculates the distance with a ruler and the scale; compare the results.

Practice
1
Into which kinds are maps divided by scale?
2
To which group does a climate map belong?
3
Map scale: 1 cm = 50 km. Two points are 6 cm apart. What is the real distance in km?
4
Why must the maps of a school atlas agree with each other? Give your view.