Italy in 49 historical maps: 150AD-2018 (144 pages). The name Italy (in Latin: Italia) can be traced back to ancient times for the peninsula, though it was initially designated for the region of the lower part of Southern Italy by Greek settlers. Most likely it is derived from the ancient word Viteliu, meaning “land of young cattle”. Italy had been a rich agricultural country since ancient times. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the Lombard invasions, Italia gradually became the collective name for various sovereign entities present on the peninsula. Italy was already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. It is also depicted on the Portolan charts during the late middle ages, when the Mediterranean was a centre for navigation and trade. The first printed separate maps of Italy appeared in the early 16th century.

Iceland in 42 historical maps: 1528-2018 (130 pages). Iceland means “Land of Ice”. The Old Norse name is Ísland. On early maps the Latin name Islandia is mostly used. Iceland is clearly depicted on the famous map of Scandinavia (1539) made by Olaus Magnus. The first separately printed map of the country appeared a few years later. The first full colour map was published by Ortelius in 1590. In the course of history numerous native cartographers turned up and produced a string of great maps of the country. E.g. Gudbrandur Thorlaksson (c.1590), Thordur Thorlaksson (1668), Eiriksson (1780), Gunnlaugsson (1849) and Thoroddsen (1900).

Madagascar in 35 historical maps: 1502-2018 (116 pages). The name Madagascar was given by Portuguese explorers in the early 16th century. It is derived from Madageiscar, a corruption of Mogadishu, popularized by Marco Polo. In the 17th century various names were used by other European explorers and mapmakers. For example S.Laurentii (Latin) by the Dutch, Saint Laurence by the British and Isle Dauphine by the French. After being discovered by the Portuguese explorer Diaz the large island appeared on the world maps from about 1500 onwards. The first separately printed maps were made in the midst of the 16th century.

Luxemburg in 35 historical maps: 1571-2018 (116 pages). The name Luxemburg (French: Luxembourg) – for both the Country and its Capital City – comes from Celtic Lucilem (meaning “small” or “little”) and Germanic burg (meaning “castle”). Its origin goes back to 963, when Siegfried (of the House of Ardennes), the Abbot of St. Maximin at Trier, got the local castle into possession. From here the successive counts of Luxemburg extended their area. In the 16th/17th century, Luxemburg became a Principality of the Low Countries, and included the present Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the current Belgian province of Luxembourg and a number of neighbouring areas in France and Germany. The first separately printed maps of Luxemburg appeared at the end of the 16th century. Most of them were made by established cartographers from the Low Countries: e.g. Ortelius, Mercator and Blaeu.

Norway, Sweden and Finland in 46 historical maps: 150AD-2018 (140 pages). In the 17th century the Latin name Scandinavia appeared on maps identifying the most northern part of western Europe (Norway, Sweden and Finland). It is derived from the Proto-Germanic word skadinaujo. The second part of the word refers to the waters surrounding the region. Parts of Scandinavia were already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. The first separately printed maps appeared in the early 16th century. The name Norway, or its native name Norge, means the “Northern Way”. It refers to the long coastal passages from the western tip of Norway to its northernmost lands in the Arctic. The name Sweden (or Svitjod in Old Norse) means “One’s own people”. The name Finland means “Land of the Finns”. The origin of the word Finn is uncertain: it may be derived from the Proto-Germanic finne (meaning “wanderers” or “hunting-folk”).

Scotland in 49 historical maps: 150AD-2018 (144 pages). The origin of the name Scotland is uncertain. Most likely it was introduced by the Greeks and Romans. It may be derived from the Greek word Scotos, a term applied to the Gaels (Celtic tribe). Or from the Latin word Sco(t)ti, which means “dark”, referring to the foggy climate. By the end of the 11th century the Late Latin word Scotia (land of the Scots) was being used to refer to (Gaelic-speaking) Scotland north of the river Forth. Caledonia is also an old Latin name for Scotland, referring tot the Caledonii tribes. It is possibly based on a Brythonic word for “hard” or “tough” (represented by the modern Welsh caled). Being part of the British Isles, Scotland was already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. The first (printed) separate maps of Scotland appeared in the 16th century.

Spain in 49 historical maps: 43AD-2018 (144 pages). On ancient maps the Latin name Iberia is used to identify the Spanish peninsula (Spain and Portugal). It is derived from the Greek word Iberes, meaning “the Celtic people of Spain”. But it may also refer to the river Ebro in Spain. The name Spain (España) is derived from the Roman name Hispania. Most likely it refers to Spain lying at the end or western edge of the Mediterranean region. (In classical times this was the known world.) It may be evolved from the Iberian word Hispalis, meaning “city of the western world”. It may also be evolved from the Greek term Hesperia, reflecting the Greek perception of Italy as a “land of the setting sun” or “western land” and Spain, lying still further west, as Hesperia ultima. Spain and Portugal were already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. The coastline was drawn in more detail on 14th century Portolan charts (nautical maps). The first separately printed maps appeared in the 16th century.

Sri Lanka in 42 historical maps: 1480-2018 (130 pages). The name Sri Lanka means “Holy Island” (from Sanskrit). Its former name is Ceylon, from Ceilão (Portuguese) and Zeilan (Dutch). It probably refers to “land of the lions”. On classical maps, based on Ptolemy’s writings, it was called Taprobana. This refers to “the island of King Rawana”. In the 16th and 17th century numerous separate maps appeared based on information of Dutch and Portuguese explorers. The capital city Colombo became an important harbour through the establishment of trading posts by Dutch, Portuguese and British colonists.

The Netherlands and Belgium in 44 historical maps: 1480-2018 (136 pages). The general name Low Countries is often used for the region covering both The Netherlands and Belgium. The name Netherlands (Dutch: Nederland ) is used for the northern country. It means “low lying lands”. The name Holland (Latin: Hollandia), covering the provinces Noord- and Zuid-Holland, is sometimes used to identify the whole country. It is probably derived from the Germanic word holt-land (“wooded land”) or it may refer to “hollow” or “marsh land”. The name Belgium, for the southern country, came into use after their independence from the United Netherlands in 1830. The name refers to “Land of the Belgae”, a Celtic tribe in he Roman province of Gallia Belgica (Belgic Gaul). The name’s origin is uncertain, but it may be derived from the Proto-Indo-European word bhelgh-, meaning “to bulge” or “to swell”. An alternative theory suggests that it means “bright”. On early maps, the name for the province of Flanders (Latin: Flandria) was also used to identify the whole country. The first printed separate maps of the Low Countries appeared in the midst of the 16th century. In the following period the Latin name Germania Inferior was often used to identify this region, e.g. in Ortelius famous world atlas (1570).

South-Africa in 46 historical maps: 1490-2018 (138 pages). The name Africa may be derived from the Phoenician word afar, meaning “dust”. The name Africa Terra (“Land of the dust”) was introduced by the ancient Romans to identify the northern part of the continent that corresponds to modern-day Tunisia. On classical Greek maps (e.g. Strabo’s world map) the name Libia was mostly used to identify the third known continent. During the Middle Ages, as the Europeans increased their knowledge and awareness of the size of the African continent, they progressively extended the name of Africa to the rest of the continent. Waldseemuller’s large map of 1507 - being partly based on Ptolemy’s ideas and new discovery’s - was one of the first world maps depicting the whole continent, including the South-African coastline. On the earlier world map of Martellus (1490) the southern part was truly out of shape; on Cantino’s world map (1502) it was corrected on account of information provided by Portuguese explorers. The first separately printed maps of the southern part of Africa appeared in the 16th century.

Nigeria in 43 historical maps: 1522-2018 (132 pages). Nigeria is named after the river Niger that flows through the western part of the country, ending in the Atlantic ocean. It means “flowing water” and may be derived from the native word Ni Gir or N’eghirren (Tuareg). The Cantino map (1502) was the first world map on which the coastline of this western part of Africa was depicted relatively accurate. Due to lack of information the inland was often filled with fictitious elements. On 17th century and later maps (e.g. Blaeu) the name of neighbouring country Benin was used to identify large parts of present-day Nigeria. During the 18th century the African maps looked rather empty again (e.g. Anville), because cartographers applied a more scientific approach and showed only features that were actually verified. The first separately printed (atlas) maps of Nigeria did not appear until their independence from the UK in 1960.

Poland in 42 historical maps: 1513-2018 (130 pages). The name Poland means “Land of Polans”. It refers to an ancient tribe occupying the territory. Most likely it is derived from the Polish word pole, which means “(open) field”. When the Polans formed a united Poland (Polska) in the 10th century, this name also came into use for the whole Polish country. On Cresques famous map of Europe (Catalan atlas, 1375) the Latin name Polonia is used. During the next centuries this Latin name was mostly used by established cartographers such as Munster, Ortelius, Mercator and Blaeu. Munster’s map (ca. 1540) was one of the first separately printed maps of the country. The map was based on earlier work of Bernard Wapowski (ca. 1526), being the ‘father of Polish cartography’.

Portugal in 46 historical maps: 1480-2018 (138 pages). On ancient maps the Latin name Iberia was used to identify the Spanish peninsula (Spain and Portugal). It is derived from the Greek word Iberes, meaning “the Celtic people of Spain”. But it may also refer to the river Ebro in Spain. Most likely the name Portugal means “beautiful port”. The first part refers to the Latin word Portus. The second part may be derived from the Greek word kallis. Spain and Portugal were already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. The coastline was drawn in more detail on 14th century Portolan charts (nautical maps). The first separately printed map of Portugal appeared in the 16th century (about 1560).

The Pacific Ocean in 38 historical maps: 1527-2018 (120 pages) The (eastern) Pacific was first sighted by Europeans in the early 16th century when Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama in 1513 and discovered the great “southern sea” which he named Mar del Sur (in Spanish). But it was Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan who gave this largest ocean in 1521 its current name: Mare Pacifico (Pacific Ocean). The name was chosen because of the apparent stillness of the sea. Magellan was the first explorer who circumnavigated the globe and charted the real extension of the Pacific Ocean. The world map of Diego Ribero (1527) was the first map showing the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. The first printed separate maps of the Pacific Ocean appeared at the end of the 16th century. Numerous maps followed in the 17th century, most of them made by Dutch cartographers in service of the VOC (Dutch East Indies Company).

Morocco in 36 historical maps: 1154-2018 (118 pages). The name Morocco most likely comes from a Berber phrase, meaning the “Land of God”. The Arabic name Al-Maghrib (English: Maghreb) refers to the northwestern part of Africa, not Morocco in particular. The first separate (printed) maps of Morocco appeared in the late 16th century. It was then divided into 2 kingdoms: The kingdom of Fez (Northern part) and the kingdom of Marocco (Southern part). The city Rabat was established as a fortress in 1150 near the former Roman settlement Sala Colonia (Chella). In 1959 it became the capital of an independent Morocco, after being a protectorate from France.

Indonesia, Philippines and Malaysia in 42 historical maps: 1522-2018 (132 pages). Indonesia is a former Dutch colony. Its name came into use after their independence in 1945. The name means Indian Islands. Before that the name Nederlands Oost-Indië (Dutch East Indies or short East Indies) was used on maps. Malaysia is a former British colony. The name is a combination of two Tamil/Sanskrit words meaning “hilltown”. The name came into use when several Indian Kingdoms entered present-day Malaysia dating back to the 3rd century. The Latin suffix ‘–sia’ was later added. The Philippines are a former Spanish colony. The name refers to King Philip II of Spain. The name appeared for the first time on maps at the end of the 16th century. The first separately printed maps of both groups of islands were published in the early 16th century by Italian cartographers. More detailed maps were made in the midst of the 17th century by Dutch explorers and mapmakers (VOC).

The United Kingdom in 49 historical maps: 150AD-2018 (144 pages). The UK is a self-descriptive short-form name for “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”. * The name Great Britain or Larger Britain, from Mediaeval Latin Britannia Maior, was first recorded by Geoffrey of Monmouth, who used it to distinguish the island from Britannia Minor (Little Britain) or Brittany in modern France. In classical times, Ptolemy also called the island Megale Brettania, in contrast to the smaller island of Ireland, which he called Mikra Brettania (Little Britain). The name Britain (or Latin name Britannia) most likely originates - via French or Welsh (Prydain) - from pretani, meaning the “painted ones”. It refers to the use of body-paint and tattoos by early inhabitants of the islands. It may also be derived from the Celtic goddess Brigid. The British Isles were already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. The first (printed) separate maps appeared in the 16th century. *Before the independence of Ireland in 1916, the UK comprised present-day England (plus Wales), Scotland, Northern-Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The term British Isles is still used to identify these 5 entities.

United States in 42 historical maps: 1507-2018 (130 pages). The United States of America (USA) are named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci. The name America was introduced by the German cartographer Martin Waldseemuller. He wrongly assumed that Amerigo Vespucci - and not Columbus – had been the first European who discovered the new western continent. The name appeared for the first time on his famous world map published in 1507. The printed wall map was lost for a long time; the only survived copy was found in Schloss Wolfegg, in southern Germany in 1901. The map, also called the “birth-certificate of America”, was purchased by the Library of Congress in 2003. The Eastern coastline of (Northern) America was drawn much more accurate on the world map of Ribero in 1527. The first separately printed map of the new continent (the Americas) was included in Sebastian Munster’s encyclopedia (1540 onwards). The first separate maps covering the area of present day USA – mostly the eastern part - appeared at the end of the 17th century. The name United States of America was introduced after their independence from the UK in 1776.

Wales in 44 historical maps: 1150-2018 (134 pages). The name Wales (and Welsh) derives from the Germanic root Walh (plural Walha). The name refers to the Celtic tribes known to the Romans as Volcae, being used to identify all Celtic inhabitants of the Roman Empire. The Welsh name for Wales is Cymry. The word is descended from the Brythonic word combrogi, meaning “fellow-countrymen”. The Latinised form is Cambria. It has survived in various geographical names; e.g. the Cambrian Mountains, which cover much of Wales. (They also gave their name to the Cambrian geological period.) The name Cambria was also used on the earliest printed maps of Wales, at the end of the 16th century. On later maps it would become Wallia (Latin) and Wales (modern English).

Switzerland in 44 historical maps: 1525-2018 (134 pages). The name Switzerland (Schweiz, Suisse) means Land of the Switzers (Swiss people). It refers to Schwyz, one of the founding cantons of the country. Its origin is uncertain: it may be derived from the Anglo-Saxon term swiþ- (meaning “strong”) or from the Germanic word swint- or Celtic word sveit- (“clearing”). The present name came into use on maps during the 17th century. On earlier maps the Latin name Helvetia was used. This name refers to the Celtic tribes which lived in the area, prior to the people who immigrated from Germany. The first separately printed maps of Helvetia appeared in the early 16th century.