The Society of Cartographers (SoC) was an association of cartographers based in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1964 at the University of Glasgow and named the Society of University Cartographers. In 1989, the Society adopted a new title and constitution opening up membership to anyone who regularly makes maps.
The Society's membership was drawn from a wide range of sectors, including education, government, local government, public utilities, and commercial and publishing industries. The majority of members were based in the UK, but there was also a significant worldwide membership.
The SoC was focused on the continual evolution of the mapping industry and how that related to overlapping disciplines such as GIS, Graphic Design, and Web mapping; and on how maps manifested themselves in today’s society and what that meant to the mapmakers of the day.
Networking
The Society held its annual conference the 'Annual Summer School' in August or September.
The Society published a newsletter and an annual journal, the Bulletin of the Society of Cartographers as well as awarding a prestigious "Wallis Award" for excellence in Cartography by a member.
Legal
The Society of Cartographers (SoC) was a charity registered in England and Wales (No 326285), operating via a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee (No 05940023).
The Society members voted unanimously in 2019 to cease the Society; all members, assets, and goodwill were transferred to their sister society "The British Cartographic Society" in January 2020.
Cartography is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.
A map is a symbolic depiction emphasizing relationships between elements of some space, such as objects, regions, or themes.
Waldo Rudolph Tobler was an American-Swiss geographer and cartographer. Tobler is regarded as one of the most influential geographers and cartographers of the late 20th century and early 21st century. He is most well known for coining what has come to be referred to as Tobler's first law of geography. He also coined what has come to be referred to as Tobler's second law of geography.
Arthur H. Robinson was an American geographer and cartographer, who was professor in the Geography Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1947 until he retired in 1980. He was a prolific writer and influential philosopher on cartography, and one of his most notable accomplishments is the Robinson projection of 1961.
The Map Communication Model is a theory in cartography that characterizes mapping as a process of transmitting geographic information via the map from the cartographer to the end-user. It was perhaps the first paradigm to gain widespread acceptance in cartography in the international cartographic community and between academic and practising cartographers.
A thematic map is a type of map that portrays the geographic pattern of a particular subject matter (theme) in a geographic area. This usually involves the use of map symbols to visualize selected properties of geographic features that are not naturally visible, such as temperature, language, or population. In this, they contrast with general reference maps, which focus on the location of a diverse set of physical features, such as rivers, roads, and buildings. Alternative names have been suggested for this class, such as special-subject or special-purpose maps, statistical maps, or distribution maps, but these have generally fallen out of common usage. Thematic mapping is closely allied with the field of Geovisualization.
The history of cartography refers to the development and consequences of cartography, or mapmaking technology, throughout human history. Maps have been one of the most important human inventions for millennia, allowing humans to explain and navigate their way through the world.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to cartography:
Pictorial maps depict a given territory with a more artistic rather than technical style. It is a type of map in contrast to road map, atlas, or topographic map. The cartography can be a sophisticated 3-D perspective landscape or a simple map graphic enlivened with illustrations of buildings, people and animals. They can feature all sorts of varied topics like historical events, legendary figures or local agricultural products and cover anything from an entire continent to a college campus. Drawn by specialized artists and illustrators, pictorial maps are a rich, centuries-old tradition and a diverse art form that ranges from cartoon maps on restaurant placemats to treasured art prints in museums.
The International Cartographic Association (ICA) is an organization formed of national member organizations, to provide a forum for issues and techniques in cartography and geographic information science (GIScience). ICA was founded on June 9, 1959, in Bern, Switzerland. The first General Assembly was held in Paris in 1961. The mission of the International Cartographic Association is to promote the disciplines and professions of cartography and GIScience in an international context. To achieve these aims, the ICA works with national and international governmental and commercial bodies, and with other international scientific societies.
Critical cartography is a set of mapping practices and methods of analysis grounded in critical theory, specifically the thesis that maps reflect and perpetuate relations of power, typically in favor of a society's dominant group. Critical cartographers aim to reveal the “‘hidden agendas of cartography’ as tools of socio-spatial power”. While the term "critical cartography" often refers to a body of theoretical literature, critical cartographers also call for practical applications of critical cartographic theory, such as counter-mapping, participatory mapping, and neogeography.
The International Map Industry Association (IMIA), formerly known as the International Map Trade Association (IMTA), is the foremost worldwide organization of the mapping, geospatial and geographic information industry. In 2018 IMIA reorganized into a single global organization, based in the United States, with one board of directors. Previously the organization had three divisions that operated separately: the Americas Division covering North, Central, and South America; the Europe/Africa/Middle East division (EAME); and the Asia-Pacific Division.
The British Cartographic Society (BCS) is an association of individuals and organisations dedicated to exploring and developing the world of maps. It is a registered charity. Membership includes national mapping agencies, publishers, designers, academics, researchers, map curators, individual cartographers, GIS specialists and ordinary members of the public with an interest in maps.
Borden D. Dent (1938–2000) was an American geographer and cartographer who served as professor emeritus and chairman of the Department of Geography and Anthropology at Georgia State University. His textbook, Cartography: Thematic Map Design, is one of the seminal texts in the field, and its sixth edition was reissued in 2009.
Society for the History of Discoveries, founded in 1960, is an international, United States-based, organization formed to stimulate interest in teaching, research, and publishing the history of geographical exploration. Its members include those from several academic disciplines as well as archivists, non-affiliated scholars, and laypersons with an interest in history. SHD advances its goals by organizing annual meetings at which pertinent scholarly research papers are presented, by publishing a scholarly journal with articles on geographic exploration, and by annually offering an award to student research papers in the field. The Society is a US non-profit 501(c)(3) organization administered by a voluntary and unpaid team of council members and officers. Membership is open to all who have an interest in the history of geographical exploration. It publishes a semiannual journal, Terrae Incognitae.
The Maps and the Internet Commission of the International Cartographic Association was created in 1999 as one of the standing commissions of the International Cartographic Association. It promotes multi-national cartographic research in order to solve problems related to web-based cartography. The commission enhances cartographic education related to the Internet. In addition, the commission promotes professional and technical standards for maps available through the Internet.
Cynthia Ann Brewer is an American cartographer, author, and professor of geography at Pennsylvania State University. Brewer's specialty relates to visibility and color theory in cartography. In 2023, she was awarded the International Cartographic Society's highest honor, the Carl Mannerfelt Gold Medal, for her distinguished contribution to the field.
The Canadian Cartographic Association, is a non-profit association devoted to promoting promote the disciplines and professions of cartography and Geographic Information Science in Canada. The organization was established in 1975 by cartographic professionals that came together in Ottawa to discuss a report that favored the formation of a professional Association dedicated to promoting Cartography. This inaugural meeting sponsored by the Resources Mapping Division of Environment Canada, led to the formation of the CCA.
Cartographic design or map design is the process of crafting the appearance of a map, applying the principles of design and knowledge of how maps are used to create a map that has both aesthetic appeal and practical function. It shares this dual goal with almost all forms of design; it also shares with other design, especially graphic design, the three skill sets of artistic talent, scientific reasoning, and technology. As a discipline, it integrates design, geography, and geographic information science.
Alexander James Kent is a British cartographer, geographer and academic, currently serving as Vice President of the International Cartographic Association. He leads the Coastal Connections Project for World Monuments Fund and English Heritage and is honorary Reader in Cartography and Geographical Information Science at Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU) and also a senior research associate of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies at the University of Oxford.
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