National Economic Atlas of China
The National Economic Atlas of China
China · Oxford University Press · 1994
Related Reviews & Articles
Book Reviews: The National Economic Atlas of China
Pannell, Clifton W.; Knox, Paul L. · 1995
This review evaluates *The National Economic Atlas of China*, a landmark volume in China’s National Atlas Series published in both Chinese and English. The purpose is to assess the atlas’s structure, data foundation, cartographic methods, and overall scholarly value for understanding China’s restructuring economy during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The review systematically examines the atlas’s 265 maps, which include national maps at scales of 1:9 million to 1:20 million, regional maps of provinces, and supplementary explanatory notebooks. It highlights the atlas’s compilation from extensive official data—over 100 million bytes—integrating the 1985–1989 Industrial Census and the 1982 and 1990 Population Censuses, and employing GIS techniques for data processing and interactive computer-assisted cartography. Key findings underscore the atlas’s remarkable spatial coverage of China’s industrial, agricultural, transportation, commercial, and demographic patterns, with 84 industry maps forming the core. The review notes that the maps offer an unparalleled cartographic portrayal of China’s economic geography, although some multivariate representations are dense and challenging to interpret, and quality control issues appear on an introductory map. Minor gaps include incomplete mapping of sparsely populated western regions and the absence of post-1990 data. Overall, the atlas is judged as a masterly synthesis of accurate and comprehensive economic spatial information, making it an indispensable reference for sinologists, geographers, and policy researchers. The review concludes that, despite minor flaws, the atlas stands as a standard cartographic resource on socialist China’s reform-era economy, commendable for its scholarly rigor and cartographic craftsmanship.
"Introduction to 'The National Economic Atlas of China and Its Electronic Edition'"
Unknown · 1996
The *National Economic Atlas of the People's Republic of China* and its electronic edition represent a major national scientific reference project, jointly led by the State Planning Commission and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, with the Institute of Geography as chief editor. Launched in 1987 and published in Chinese (1993) and English (1994), the atlas contains 10 thematic sections, 265 maps, and 250,000 words of explanatory text, comprehensively covering resources, population, overall economy, agriculture, industry, transportation, construction, urban development, environmental protection, commerce, foreign trade, tourism, finance, education, science, culture, health, and provincial economies. The compilation method combines high-level synthesis with in-depth analysis, employing innovative indicator classification, grading systems, and multi-level cartographic units to systematically depict China's independent national economic and industrial system—its scale, structure, spatial patterns, regional disparities, and the decisive roles of resources and population. An expert appraisal committee certified the atlas as having attained internationally advanced standards. Professor D.R.F. Taylor, then ICA President, described it as one of the most comprehensive and detailed economic atlases ever produced and an outstanding contribution to understanding China's socio‑economic development. The electronic version, developed on the self‑developed EA‑World platform with the latest data, offers strong visualization, ease of operation, and robust comparative analysis, and was acclaimed as a world‑leading electronic atlas masterpiece and “a pearl of China’s information industry.” The atlas has become an authoritative tool for macro‑decision‑making, academic research, and international investment, exerting a profound and lasting impact.
Book Reviews: The National Economic Atlas of China
Veeck, Gregory · 1995
This review evaluates the newly published *Economic Atlas of China*, a landmark cartographic work that presents the most comprehensive English-language summary of China's complex economic geography to date. The atlas, part of a revived National Atlas project, features 265 full-color maps organized into ten thematic sections—including resources, population, agriculture, industry, transportation, and provincial economic profiles—with data often resolved at the county level. Over 500 distinct variables are mapped, drawing on compilations by more than twenty ministries and key statistical agencies. The review praises the atlas’s superb cartography and high production standards, noting its value as both a reference volume and a source of research inspiration. While the coverage is vast, several omissions are highlighted, such as the absence of per capita income maps and inconsistent provision of data sources, which could limit secondary analyses. Certain maps would also benefit from standardization or relative measures rather than absolute counts. The four accompanying handbooks, though prone to separation from the oversized volume, offer expanded definitions and regional economic sketches that enhance interpretability. Despite these minor shortcomings, the atlas is deemed an indispensable resource for any research library. It not only consolidates an immense amount of economic information but also visually stimulates important geographic questions about regional inequality, development dynamics, and the spatial patterns of contemporary China. Ultimately, the reviewer concludes that the atlas masterfully blends scholarly utility with artistic excellence, setting a benchmark for national economic atlases worldwide.
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