John Nelson lately noticed that navigable passages betwixt mountains inwards the USA bring lots of unlike names. Some are called passes, others are called gaps too some are fifty-fifty called notches, or saddles. Being a cartographer John wondered whether at that topographic point could hold upwards whatsoever regional variation inwards the role of these names for navigable valleys. He thence mapped out where these place-names are used inwards the USA too released the results inwards the Gap, Pass, Notch too Saddle storey map.
To essay the regional variations inwards the words given to navigable valleys inwards the USA Nelson downloaded too mapped every named house from the U.S. Board of Geographic Names. The number is a fascinating map of 2.3 meg place-names inwards America. As you lot scroll through the Gap, Pass, Notch too Saddle storey map you lot are shown how place-names inwards the USA concentrate where humans settle along coastlines, along shipping routes too inwards major conurbations.
As you lot progress farther though the Gap, Pass, Notch too Saddle storey map the non-valley place-names are removed from the map. The unlike navigable passage place-names are too then each given a unlike color. The number is a map which reveals the regional variations inwards how these passages are named throughout the USA.
If you lot are interested inwards carrying out your ain toponym inquiry John has included a link to download the huge place-name database from the U.S. Board of Geographic Names. Alternatively you lot could hold upwards lazy too play alongside Places! instead.
Places! allows you lot to map the relative density of place-names inwards unlike countries some the world. Using the application you lot tin displace larn inwards place-name prefixes or suffixes too persuasion a map showing the geographic distribution of place-names containing those terms.
For example, inwards the USA nosotros tin displace larn inwards the prefix of -Las to run across where towns too cities bring names starting alongside the Castilian give-and-take for 'the'. In the U.K. nosotros tin displace persuasion where place-names include the suffixes -thorpe too -thwaite to run across where the Vikings settled inwards Great Britain (the resulting map shows that these 2 place-name endings are pop throughout the expanse that was i time known equally the Danelaw, next the Viking invasions of the 9th century).
The Places! application uses OpenStreetMap for the place-name data. The application includes a number of options which permit you lot to conform the size of map, circle points too an 'advanced' selection which allows you lot to deport out 'regular expression' searches.
You tin displace bring hours of fun alongside Places! For instance inwards the USA if you lot are interested inwards where Castilian plays a large business office inwards local place-names you lot could too search for the distribution of the San- or Santa- prefixes. On the other mitt the suffix -ville mightiness hold upwards a practiced indication of where French immigrants originally settled inwards the USA.
