GIS software provides powerful tools that greatly simplify map production and the spatial representation of geographic, cartographic, and attribute data. Users can create three main types of maps: qualitative, quantitative, and ordered maps.
Qualitative maps are used to represent phenomena according to their different categories, characteristics, and spatial distribution. They are designed to answer questions such as “What is it?” and “Where is it located?”
Representation of Brazil’s State Capitals
Figure 1 presents Brazil’s 27 Federative Units (States) and the location of their respective capital cities.
Figure 1 – Representation of Brazil’s State Capitals
Federative Units grouped by Geographic Regions
Figure 2 presents the Federative Units grouped according to the major geographic regions defined by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
To generate this map automatically, each state must be associated in the database or Shapefile attribute table (DBF) with its corresponding geographic region. States belonging to the same region are grouped together and displayed using the same color.
Figure 2 – Federative Units grouped by Geographic Regions
Symbols with different shapes and colors are used to facilitate the identification and differentiation of map features. These symbols can be customized using a variety of:
- Sizes
- Patterns
- Colors
- Line thicknesses
Qualitative maps are commonly used to represent:
- Administrative divisions
- Land use and land cover categories
- Vegetation types
- Soil classifications
- Transportation networks
- Political boundaries
- Environmental zones
- Geographic regions
Because they focus on categories rather than numerical values, qualitative maps are especially effective for illustrating the distribution and location of different types of geographic phenomena.
They serve as a fundamental tool for geographic analysis, territorial planning, education, and communication of spatial information.