African Studies Map Collection
Boston University's African Studies' Library has an extensive collection with over 1500 maps focusing on the continent of Africa and its countries. These maps range in publication dates from the seventeenth century to recent years and focus on entire countries or subsections of Africa as well as small towns and city environs. The collection includes maps that span a myriad of subjects from topography and geology to cattle distribution and rainfall and also contains a small number of transparencies.
At present the maps have been organized into three separate lists (by date, drawer, or title) which are available below:
ASL Maps by date of publication ASL Maps by country ASL Maps by title
Requesting a Map:
Consultation of the maps is permitted within the African Studies
Library Reference Area only. Please contact us should you
have any questions.
Some Helpful Online Map Resources:
www.afriterra.org - the Afriterra Foundation is a nonprofit cartographic library. Their online catalog provides high-resolution, digitized access to rare maps of early Africa (dating from 1480 - 1900). There are currently about 1,100 maps in their database.
www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/africa.html - Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection from the University of Texas at Austin. The online collection includes maps from the CIA website and various other sources. Generally more current maps, though there are historical maps also. They are listed according to continent, country and region. The list also includes the year they were published and file size.
www.worldmapper.org - The Worldmapper site is a collaborative effort between University of Sheffield and University of Michigan. These are "density-equalising cartograms" of the world. Each map reflects a particular subject and countries are re-sized according to the variable/data being mapped. They are a wonderful visuals for statistical data. There are 366 maps currently on the site, with more being added.
All About Africa - Educational software providing interactive games, quizzes and tutorials regarding the geography of Africa. It is geared for children - high school, but provides useful exercises in memorizing/learning geographical regions, countries, capitals, rivers, etc. of Africa. Also provides a free blank map of Africa for downloading. http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/African_Geography.htm
For other useful online sources, please visit our BU Library Map Subject Guide
Beth Restrick
brestric@bu.edu