Compte rendu : Un atlas de la Libye : National Atlas of the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Secretariat of Planning (1978)

Summary

This article reviews an atlas of Libya. The atlas first situates Libya within the global, Islamic, Arab, and African contexts, and across time, using historical maps that are more abundant for the medieval period than for the colonial era. Its main maps are mostly at scales between 1:5,000,000 (geology, pedology, vegetation, population, etc.) and 1:18,000,000 (climatic data), while also including more detailed thematic maps on soil suitability, agricultural development projects, urban planning, and hydrocarbon exploitation perimeters. This clear and convenient atlas (also available in a fully Arabic version) is certainly the best available means for a serious introduction to modern Libya. Although the map of airfields may be incomplete, especially in the south, such discretion is not specific to Libya.