Interdependence of national and regional atlases

Summary

This paper examines the similarities and differences between national and regional atlases. National atlases, confined to national boundaries, offer comprehensive thematic map collections, emphasize complex thematic presentation, and serve as historical documents of a given period. Regional atlases, whose delimitation is influenced by physiographic, economic, or administrative factors, exhibit more flexible theme selection, focus on analytical maps, and represent not only current natural and social patterns but also development potentials. Despite variations in scale and content structure, the two are not substitutes but complementary, jointly serving geographical synthesis and regional planning purposes.