HistoAtlas
Encyclopedia
HistoAtlas is a free collection of historic geographic information of the human culture all over the world. This is achieved as a time enabled geographic information system (GIS) on the web. All information can be used and edited freely and is intended to be a resource for education
, archaeologists, historians and others.
and check if it is consistent. It is not meant discover new historical facts
but to put everything together so it can be presented as one whole story.
It is an open project making sure everyone benefits from it. Everyone can use the information and can collaborate on the project. Its main audience is the general public but it should also have enough historical details so also historians should be able to enjoy it.
HistoAtlas is not only able to visualize the changes in extent of different countries. But also the events caused this change altogether, because these things are historically more important than just the change of a border.
The atlas has information about different aspects of history
. A few examples.
In concept there are some similarities to what online encyclopedia like Wikipedia
are doing, with differences on how data is stored, presented and used. It is a history oriented geographic information system. Information is structured more transparently so it can be searched more efficiently and presented in different ways. Wikipedia and other encyclopedia are focused on articles and are not able to create maps efficiently because they are not meant to do this.
But like Wikipedia
the information and application will be made available under an open license, meaning it will be maintained by volunteers who want to share their knowledge.
All data published under the project is put under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, archaeologists, historians and others.
Introduction
HistoAtlas provides a system to actively maintain historical information derived from historical recordsDocument
The term document has multiple meanings in ordinary language and in scholarship. WordNet 3.1. lists four meanings :* document, written document, papers...
and check if it is consistent. It is not meant discover new historical facts
Facts
Facts usually refers to the usage as a plural noun of fact, an incontrovertible truth.Facts may also refer to:*Carroll, Lewis, who wrote a poem called "Facts"*FACTS , program produced by Asia Television in Hong Kong....
but to put everything together so it can be presented as one whole story.
It is an open project making sure everyone benefits from it. Everyone can use the information and can collaborate on the project. Its main audience is the general public but it should also have enough historical details so also historians should be able to enjoy it.
HistoAtlas is not only able to visualize the changes in extent of different countries. But also the events caused this change altogether, because these things are historically more important than just the change of a border.
The atlas has information about different aspects of history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
. A few examples.
- Political boundariesBorderBorders define geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions, such as governments, sovereign states, federated states and other subnational entities. Some borders—such as a state's internal administrative borders, or inter-state borders within the Schengen Area—are open and...
based on antique historical records or archeological research. - Historical events like wars, disasters, discoveries, treaties and journeys that shaped the course of time.
- Facts about historical figures and their families that played an important role in history.
- The evolution of cultural aspects like languages and religions.
Strategy
HistoAtlas aims to be a free, multilingual historical encyclopedia, intended as the most precise open content global historical reference.In concept there are some similarities to what online encyclopedia like Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
are doing, with differences on how data is stored, presented and used. It is a history oriented geographic information system. Information is structured more transparently so it can be searched more efficiently and presented in different ways. Wikipedia and other encyclopedia are focused on articles and are not able to create maps efficiently because they are not meant to do this.
But like Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
the information and application will be made available under an open license, meaning it will be maintained by volunteers who want to share their knowledge.
Consistency
The vision that HistoAtlas wants to put forward is the one of a collaborative system. Scientist require that the information is correct. Making sure that data is correct will be a high priority of the system. For now only a basic system has been put in place, but this will be extended in the future. Making sure the system is very manageable, transparent and easy to explore is the key to finding flaws and removing them and putting forward new relations.Licencing
Everything developed for the project is licensed under an open license. It can be used and improved by anyone.All data published under the project is put under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.