43
chapter 3
Text
Material and Typography
. . . I am the voice of today, the herald of tomorrow. . . . I am the
leaden army that conquers the world—I am TYPE.
—F
rederic
W
illiam
G
oudy
,
The Type Speaks (1937)
PlAnnIng foR letteRIng
Although maps are
generally symbolic in nature, most maps contain considerable
text material. Text on maps serves one of four purposes: (1) to label, (2) to explain,
(3) to direct or point, or (4) to establish a hierarchy or show size—here type acts as
a symbol. Therefore, the kinds of text materials we usually find on maps are titles,
legends and explanatory material, statements of source, labels on symbols and scales,
and place-names.
There are four aspects to lettering on maps: text wording, type placement, type
selection, and editing. The text and lettering must be planned just like other elements
of the design are planned. One cannot wait until the map is almost finished to decide
what the title will be and where it will be placed; the
space for the title must be
allocated when the layout is first conceived. While computer methods make changes
easier, it is better to take time in the planning stage to decide on wording and place-
ment. If you fail to take time to plan, the result is crowded names, ill-conceived titles,
and generally poorly executed design.
