Territory, Geographic Information, and the Map

In the digital era, “geographic information” has emerged as a primary intermediary in two-way communications between territories and maps. Correspondingly, we argue that the “territory as the source of the map” and the “map as the source of the territory” have become fundamental features of scientific study, spatial planning, and public communication. This shift to a communications perspective in map-territory relationships is tied to rapidly expanding abilities to link sources of increasingly diverse geographically referenced data, information, and resources across disciplinary boundaries through space and time. This chapter explores linkages between the map and reality, considers potentials for discord between the intentions of map makers and the perceptions and applications of map users, and gives special attention to changes in these relationships in response to the digitalization and spatialization of contemporary communication, information, and sensor technologies.