Zu einigen Problemen der Konzeption und kartographischen Gestaltung von Nationalatlanten der Entwicklungsländer

Summary

This article examines the conceptual and cartographic problems involved in compiling national atlases for developing countries. The dissolution of the colonial system after the Second World War and the emergence of numerous independent states stimulated atlas production, because national atlases offered an economical and comparatively rapid means of organizing knowledge about territory, environment, natural resources, population and labour. Such atlases can support economic and social planning, assist in training national geographers and cartographers, guide further research and territorial development, and enable developing countries to contribute more fully to international geographical science. Although organizations such as the International Geographical Union and the United Nations promoted the exchange of atlas-making experience, principles derived from countries with mature geodetic, cartographic and statistical systems cannot simply be transferred to states lacking comparable institutions, data and research traditions. National atlases are therefore not neutral collections of facts: their themes and representational methods must reflect each country’s natural conditions, historical development, economic structure, settlement patterns, cultural traditions and political priorities. Particular emphasis should be placed on the inventory and spatial organization of strategically important resources, the natural and socioeconomic foundations of agriculture, and the industries shaping national specialization. Inadequate theoretical research, especially concerning tropical and subtropical environments, may produce competing classifications and mapping concepts; the Cuban national atlas illustrates how alternative scientific interpretations can be represented when no generally accepted system exists. The article argues that atlases should also experiment with integrated representations of natural-technological systems and territorial industrial complexes, although successful precedents remain scarce. Applied maps are especially important. Their legends should be designed for practical use rather than follow exclusively genetic or academic classifications—for example, mineral resources may be grouped by economic use, quality and development potential. Component-based natural regionalization maps should combine inventories with forecasts and recommendations for land and resource use. Because information changes rapidly, loose-leaf publication is preferable to exclusively bound editions: obsolete sheets can be replaced, while several related maps can be compared simultaneously. Traditional atlas conventions likewise require revision. Maps need not always cover the entire state; larger-scale regional maps should portray areas targeted by irrigation, intensive livestock production, specialized cropping or other development programmes. Historical maps should also be included, particularly because developing countries often lack separate historical atlases. Overall, the author calls for a flexible, country-specific approach attentive to both the available level of knowledge and urgent development needs. Solving these conceptual and design problems would enhance the scientific and practical value of national atlases and contribute substantially to the broader advancement of atlas cartography.