Cartographical Survey: The National Atlas of Japan

Summary

This paper provides a critical review of two significant cartographic publications. The main focus is the English-language edition of *The National Atlas of Japan*, a collaborative effort between government officials, academics, and cartographers. The review assesses the atlas’s overall production quality, describing its binding, colour representation, and printing as meeting the highest international standards. The atlas contains 216 maps, predominantly thematic, across A1 and A2 formats, accompanied by detailed explanatory notes that collectively summarize Japan’s physical, social, and economic geography. Key thematic emphases are analysed, notably the strong coverage of economic activities, physical environment, and social conditions, with particular attention given to maps addressing environmental problems, a reflection of contemporary Japanese concerns. The review evaluates cartographic techniques, including colour shading, proportional symbols, dot maps, and proportional lines, finding them generally effective but noting that the narrow geography of the Japanese archipelago occasionally leads to visual clutter, as seen in the coastal shipping map. While the atlas succeeds admirably as a comprehensive reference work for planners, two limitations are identified: most maps depict static distributions, lacking temporal change, and some information is obscured by the deep centre fold in larger double-page maps. The paper also briefly introduces the *Irrigation Atlas of India*, noting its introductory maps on meteorology, soils, land use, crops, population, and groundwater, followed by detailed maps of irrigation command areas. Overall, the review commends the Japanese atlas as an indispensable, high-standard reference for students of modern Japan, while offering a preliminary glance at the Indian atlas’s scope.