Plenary meeting of the Commission on National Atlases of the International Geographical Union in Budapest, 7–11 September 1962

Summary

This article reports on the plenary meeting of the International Geographical Union’s Commission on National Atlases, held in Budapest from 7 to 11 September 1962. Geographers and cartographers representing sixteen countries reviewed the Commission’s current activities, national and regional atlas projects, commissioned research, and the work programme leading to the 1964 International Geographical Congress in London. The discussions focused on harmonizing atlas contents, legends, symbols, and colour schemes; maintaining atlases through systematic revision; improving the international comparability of statistical data; and enabling national atlas materials to support broader international cartographic initiatives. Reports documented the complete reorganization of the United States national atlas project, preparations for Britain’s first modern national atlas, progress on India’s extensive atlas programme, and the revision of the Atlas of Australian Resources. New programmes from Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, and Switzerland were also presented. Comparative analysis demonstrated that regional atlases vary primarily because of differences in intended audiences and practical purposes rather than merely in format or graphic design. West German planning atlases emphasized economic statistics, Austrian atlases historical and ethnographic regional studies, French atlases regional economic analysis, Canadian atlases resource inventory and evaluation, and American atlases business reference. Soviet regional atlases were designed for multiple uses, particularly economic and cultural development, planning, and the rational location of production in accordance with natural and economic conditions. The meeting concluded that standardization should rest on scientifically grounded classifications while remaining adaptable to national circumstances, and that this work required cooperation among research institutions, specialized IGU commissions, international organizations, and leading subject experts. Its resolution called for stronger support for new atlas production and regular updating, a recommended common list of maps, a minimum atlas programme suitable for less-developed countries, standardized explanatory texts and commentaries, expanded exchanges of atlases and information, and further development of comprehensive regional atlases. Working groups were consequently established for population maps, critical reviews, explanatory materials, statistical sources and industrial mapping, and the minimum national-atlas programme. By assigning specific responsibilities and strengthening international coordination, the Budapest meeting created a clearer institutional framework for making national atlases more comparable, current, accessible, and useful in international cartography.