“Get A New Perspective On The World Every Day”: 35 Unusual Maps That Might Change How You See The World
InterviewMaps are our passion. We like looking at them. We enjoy drawing them. But most of all, we love seeing a map that gives us a wholly new perspective on the world—something we can share with our friends and blow their minds as well. Or something we can refer to during a fancy dinner party to sound super up-to-date with what’s happening in the world.
The ‘I [Effing] Love Maps’ online project is one of the best niches on the internet for cartographers and map lovers—veteran and amateur—alike. They share maps that are unusual, unique, and (in some cases) a little bit out there. All for the sake of informing and entertaining us and keeping our spark of curiosity burning bright. We promise you, after this list, you won’t see Planet Earth the same ever again.
Put on your safari hats and check out some of their best maps below, dear Pandas. While you’re scrolling down, upvote your faves and share why you liked them. And if you’d like to continue the adventure, be sure to plot a course to Bored Panda’s previous feature about ‘I [Effing] Love Maps’ right over here.
More info: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Mapographics.shop
This post may include affiliate links.
The World’s Population At 8 Billion At Some Point In Late 2022
The eight billionth human being will enter the world, ushering in a new milestone for humanity. In just 48 years, the world population has doubled in size, jumping from four to eight billion. Of course, humans are not equally spread throughout the planet, and countries take all shapes and sizes. This visualizations aim to build context on how the eight billion people are distributed around the world
Lars Erik, one of the founders of 'I [Effing] Love Maps,' was kind enough to answer Bored Panda's questions about the project. We had a chat about the passion for cartography, how the information presented in each one is verified, and where the line between a good map and a great one lies.
"Maps are powerful in many ways. It is an effective way to communicate a phenomenon that has geographical or spatial relevance. From demonstrating the obvious of how neighboring countries see each other, to conveying complex information about the state of nature using remote sensing data," Lars told us.
"In an ever-complex world, with apparently ever-complex challenges, from climate, nature, geopolitics, war, energy security, and human rights issues—maps enable us to understand and navigate the ever-evolving complexity of our societies," he explained just how powerful maps really are.
Which Energy Source Do European Countries Rely On The Most?
This Map Shows US States By Reaction To Roe V. Wade Being Overturned By The U.S. Supreme Court (As Of June 28, 2022)
Bored Panda was interested to hear about how the information on the maps is verified and how the reliability of the sources is checked. Lars noted that it's essential to separate the maps that they sell through their company, Mapographics, and the maps they repost on 'I [Effing] Love Maps.'
"For the maps we sell, all the data is acquired from peer-reviewed academic studies or satellite data from trusted sources such as NASA or ESA," Lars explained.
"For the maps we repost, we do a general review of the source of the data, but we do not either endorse or fully check all the background data. For instance, if we republish a map of the most common beer sold in various countries, we are not in the position that we can verify whether the sales volumes of the beer are really what the map says," he noted.
"Furthermore, for some posts, we receive a lot of feedback when they denote a politically controversial subject, such as the sovereignty of west Sahara or the acknowledgment of Palestine. We take no official position when posting these maps, but we do select maps we believe are of interest to our followers."
Heatwaves And Fires Scorch Europe, Africa, And Asia In Summer 2022
Suicide Rate In Europe - 2018
What Sound Do Frogs Make In Your Language?
According to Lars, finding the line between a good and a great map is tricky. A lot depends on the audience in question.
"For our followers on IFLM, I think the maps are very effective in communicating a message, and where that message either confirms a former belief or surprises you are the ones that get the most attention. For our customers purchasing maps from Mapographics.shop, it's the design and ability to look nice on a well. And for the maps, we make aimed at more professional customers, such as international organizations, it is the ability to convey a policy-relevant message based on credible data sources and analysis," he shared that different people value slightly different things.
"And if we make maps for map nerds—it's all about the details. So there is not a single recipe, we need to consider our target group and try to make or publish maps following their viewpoint and interest."
This Map Displays The Grading Of Countries In Africa According To The World Hunger Index 2021
How Important Is Religion For Europeans?
So Denmark is on renewable resources and low on religion....you all looking for an extra citizen? I can be of help.
How Much Sleep Are People In Europe Getting?
The ‘I [Effing] Love Maps’ project has carved out a sizable niche for itself on the internet. On Facebook alone, it has 800k followers, followed by 364k fans on Instagram, as well as a further 36.8k Twitter followers. In other words, there’s well over a million internet users who love the project for its educational and informative content alike.
The team running the show notes that they keep their audience “updated about global events via maps.” And that’s exactly what they continue to do.
Whether you’re an academic or simply want to know more about the world, the maps they share are great for expanding your knowledge. They’re also fantastic primers for getting you interested on specific topics, whether economics, geography, or demographics.
Expressing Laughter Around The World: This Is How To Laugh Online In 26 Languages
This Map Shows Gun Deaths In Europe In 2019
For comparison's sake, the US gun death rate in the same year was 13.3. It increased to 15.1 the following year.
This Map Shows The International Status Of Abortion Law In June 2022
This chart is wildly inaccurate. A few examples: Abortion is generally legal in much of Mexico. Abortion is illegal under the German constitution, but exempt from criminal prosecution early in the pregnancy or with many social grounds later; this keeps the German abortion rate at a small percentage of that of nations like China, the U.S., etc. HELP ME! I've been cancelled because I expressed astonishment so much of Europe relies so heavily on oil for electricity. Please upvote me here: https://www.boredpanda.com/maps-keep-you-updated/?comment_id=12766073 (A net of 10 downvotes results in an account suspension.)
For our previous feature about the project, my colleague got in touch with the founders, Pablo Izquierdo and Lars Erik. The twosome, who live in Oslo and Madrid, have been developing maps together for more than a decade, and have founded the company, Mapographics.
According to the founders, the goal of Mapographics is to make informative, educational, and aesthetic maps. “We have developed a lot of maps and analysis in the sustainability domain, and lately we have also started to sell maps for decoration. We love to merge scientific data with design,” they told Bored Panda.
The ‘I [Effing] Love Maps’ project was created over a decade ago. Pablo and Lars wanted to have a place on social media where they could share their love for maps. And it all started on good ol’ Facebook.
“It started with a Facebook page, and then moved on to Twitter and Instagram. We’re super happy to have several hundreds of thousands of followers, which to us is only a testimonial that many people share our love of maps,” Pablo told Bored Panda during an interview earlier.
According to him, people nowadays live in an ever more globalized society, meaning that the distances between us are getting smaller and smaller. It’s all thanks to cultural exchange and technology.
This Map Shows The Annual Kilograms Of Municipal Solid Waste Generated Per Capita In Countries Around The World
Countries That Have Us Military Bases
Where Do Europeans Migrate To And How Many Of Them Live Abroad?
Interesting fact - I am Ukrainian (Southern East region) who migrated firstly to Poland, and than to Albania. Don't know how most of Ukrainians are migrating to Russia, if when I was in PL (before war times), more than 2mln Ukrainians were living there and around 400,000 Ukrainians were granted PL residence permit YEARLY. Just in my university percentage of Ukrainian students was over 30%. Through my life I knew only several people who migrated to Russia (all of them are my distant relatives), and dozens of those who migrated to Poland, some of them have even got the citizenship already. Considering the fact that I am from a region not far away from RUS border, it's curious.
“In addition, themes such as those that relate to environment, climate, sustainability, man-build-environment, and more, nurture more interest in the spatial dimensions of things. Maps can represent how things are tied together in the spatial dimension, or geographical sense,” Pablo said.
“We experience a much higher interest in maps, more advanced spatial analysis, and more lightly, storytelling.”
Last Monarch Of Every European Country
So, we're all just pranking Charles? EDIT: HELP ME!!! I've been censored from BoredPanda because I expressed astonishment that much of Europe still relies heavily on oil! It's post #2 right now!
What Percentage Of Europeans Actively Avoid The News?
This #map Shows The Share Of Food Imports Per Country Affected By Export Restrictions Elsewhere (In Percent Of Calories)
Food and aid should not be an item involved in war. Sadly it's one of the first to be effected.
“From a social media point of view, people love maps that are spot-on in conveying a message of stereotypical characteristics and differences between countries. From a more professional point of view, the interest in sustainability related topics in maps has skyrocketed in recent years, such as maps showing degradation of nature or the effects of climate change. But more generally speaking, what we see is that maps, as a way to represent data or tell a story, are increasingly used in media, by the government, NGOs and even in the business community.”
Pigs Per Km2 In Europe
This Map Shows The European Countries With The Fastest Download Speeds In 2022
I live in Budapest, Hungary, having 1000Mbps (1GBps). It could be upgraded to 2GBps but for what? Netflix in 4K needs 15MBps (0.015GBps). We have 1-2ms ping time to the service provider. Everything is lightning fast.
Passports Of European Countries
However, it’s far from easy to create a map that looks good, tells a story, and is also based on advanced data. There’s a lot of trial and error involved here!
“To put it simply, the process starts from the idea on what story/data the maps should express, to identification of data source, quality assurance, data processing, GIS [Geographical Information Systems] processing, and working to ensure the final print has crisp and flawless details when it turns into a final product."
This Map Shows The Bases In Europe Where U.S.-Owned B61 Nuclear Gravity Bombs Are Stored
Allegedly Russia has always kept nuclear weapons in Kaliningrad, too. Not US-owned, but still ready to party. All too many everywhere
Percentage Of iPhone Users In Europe
How Much Sleep Are People In Asia Getting?
A while back, Bored Panda spoke to land surveyor Patrick McGranaghan, the founder of another major community for map lovers. He explained to us that there are a variety of different reasons why someone chooses to make a map in the first place.
“Sometimes for navigation, sometimes for showing statistical phenomena, and sometimes for fantasy. While artistic skill helps, it is not absolutely necessary. The important thing is to make it easy for users to glean useful information. Most maps should have a thesis or a story it is going to tell and this needs to be told through the map," he told us.
This Map Shows The Member States That Paid Their Contributions To The United Nation's Regular Budget For 2022
The fact that Russia and China are both still part of the UN is an atrocity. Both countries commit constant human rights violations.
For the record, our budgetary cycle in the US differs from the UN's, and taht often affects what is seen as "late payment" or "not paid in full for this budgetary cycle".
This is misleading as “payment” is not always done with money but also military support
Maybe it is time to make their voting worth proportional to the payment made. Those that pay on time 100%. Those pay late will have their votes worth 50% only.
except the US pays 17% of the entire UN Budget, most countries contribute less than 1%, the reason why the US has not paid in full is bc congress passed laws banning US money to certain UN Orgs for "promoting hate", and therefore the US doesn't officially meet its obligation. There are 190 countries in the UN, as long as you pay your 1/190th of the budget, you paid in full, regardless of other oblgations you agreed to
Load More Replies...How Many Years Do People In Asia Spend On Average In The Education System?
Where Are The Most Popular Countries For People To Move To?
1. Canada – most popular relocation destination for 50 countries 2. Japan – most popular relocation destination for 31 countries 3. Spain – most popular relocation destination for 19 countries
The land surveyor noted that many beautiful maps these days are made using Blender. “Blender has a great ability to show light and shadow patterns that are almost photo-realistic. I think there are ways to use this program beyond showing maps with realistic terrain,” he explained that the computer program can help mapmakers achieve the effects that they desire, e.g. showing realistic terrain and more.
What Percentage Of Europeans Trust The News?
This Map Shows The Top Restaurants In 2022, According To The William Reed Business Media Annual List
So none from France or Japan, the two countries with the most top of the line restaurants in the world (with Italy and Spain just behind). How serious is that… Any dumbass can make a ridiculous list but it shouldn’t be relayed.
How Much Rice Do People In Europe Consume?
How Much Do Asian Countries Spend On Their Military?
This #map Shows The Net Annual Migration Per 1,000 Population (Average 2017-2021), By Country/Territory
The time period makes it meaningless. Many counties had closed borders for covid for 2/4 years covered by the graph.
How Much Gdp Output Does One Hour Of Work Produce On Average?
Ice Cream Consumption In Eu
What Percentage Of People In Asia Experiences Anger On An Average Day?
This Map Shows Countries By Existence And Practice Of Death Penalty Laws (As Of April 4, 2022)
I guess the US doesn't appreciate the irony of abortions being illegal while the death penalty is legal.
This Map Shows The Countries With No Direct Access To An Open Sea (Enclaves)
The World’s Billionaire Population, By Country The World’s Billionaires
only 3,311 individuals—represent almost $11.8 trillion in wealth. The global billionaire population continued to grow in 2021, increasing by 3%. Over the same period, billionaire wealth also increased by 18%. This map uses data from the Wealth-X Billionaire Census to visualize where the world’s billionaires live and breaks down their collective wealth.
This Map Shows The Share Of Electricity Generated Through Hydropower Per Country
What Really Makes People Happy?
While countless academic researchers have tried to get to the bottom of this, the truth is, it’s a complicated question to answer. Happiness levels depend on a number of factors, including one’s financial security, perceptions of social support, feelings of personal freedom, and much more. This map pulls data from the World Happiness Report to uncover the average happiness scores of 146 countries. It shows average scores from 2019 to 2021, and highlights which countries are the happiest—or unhappiest—and why
How Good Is The Quality Of The Roads In European Countries?
This Map Shows The Price Of One Gallon Of Gasoline, By Country/Territory (As Of March 28, 2022)
So they're measuring prices in gallons because one country out of 192 uses this measurement?
This Map Shows The Countries Experiencing Direct Military Intervention With Participation Of U.S. Troops Since The End Of The Cold War
The US is like that nosy neighbour down the street who thinks they're the boss of everyone.
This Map Shows Projected Annual Inflation By Country In 2022
Scientists Show How Forests Measure Up A New Map Shows The Height Of Earth’s Forests, From Stubby Saplings To Timbers Towering More Than 50 Meters Tall, Across The Entire Land Surface
Would love to see this side by side with a map of the same data for 50 or 100 years ago, etc.
This Map Shows The Incarceration Rates Across Europe In 2021
This Map Shows The Share Of Seats Held By Right-Wing Parties Across Europe In 2022
And out of the woodworks come all the little neonazis that are to chicken to admit what they are. Claiming the European far right is "moderate"
Where Do Europeans Prefer To Go On Holiday And What Percentage Of The Population Went On A Holiday Abroad In 2019?
Europe And Americas At The Same Latitude
A once in a lifetime opportunity to live in Canada. Hell, I'll take it.
Grizzly Bear Modern V Historic Range
What’s The Preferred Alcoholic Drink Of South Americans?
No surprise for Argentinia drinking mostly wine, they produce very good wines there
A July Of Extremes In The United States, Pervasive And Persistent Heat Domes Put More Than 150 Million People Under Heat Warnings And Advisories In The Month Of July
Yep. I live in Oklahoma and we had like 10 heat advisories (When the temp reaches 100 or above) in July
In 2021, The US Brought In Approximately $2.83 Trillion Worth Of Goods From Its Various International Trading Partners
But what types of goods are most commonly imported throughout different parts of US? This graphic by OnDeck shows the top import in every U.S. state, using January 2022 data from the U.S.
This Chart Shows The Share Of Average Monthly Wage Needed For 60 Litres / 18 Gallons Of Gasoline In Selected Countries
Visualizing Which Countries Drink The Most Beer Humans Have Been Drinking Beer For Thousands Of Years
And since it’s still one of the most popular beverages worldwide, it seems we haven’t gotten sick of it yet. The latest available data shows that beer consumption exceeded 177 million kiloliters around the world in 2020. Beer consumption occurs all over the world, but the amount varies greatly depending on the location. So, which countries drink the most beer? This graphic by @visualcap uses data from Kirin Holdings to compare global beer consumption by country. Kirin is a Japanese company that has been tracking beer consumption around the world since 1975
Isn't total consumption a bad measurement? China has over 15 times more people than Germany but the consumption is only 5 times higher
How Much Land Does The US Military Own In Each State?
Via Visual Capitalist The United States spends an unparalleled amount of money on its military—about $778 billion each year to be precise. Additionally, the U.S. military also owns, leases, or operates an impressive real estate portfolio with buildings valued at $749 billion and a land area of 26.9 million acres, of which around 98% is located within the United States. This visual, using data from the Department of Defense (DoD) reveals how much of each state the U.S. military owns, leases, or operates on. This map visualizes the share of a state comprised by military sites, which the Department of Defense defines as a specific geographic location that has individual land parcels or facilities assigned to it. The geographical location is leased to, owned by, or otherwise under the jurisdiction of the DoD.
So no military bases in South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Michigan and West Virginia? ☮
Wheat Is A Dietary Staple For Millions Of People Around The World
After rice and corn (maize), wheat is the third most-produced cereal worldwide, and the second-most-produced for human consumption. And considering wheat’s importance in the global food system, any impact on major producers such as droughts, wars, or other events, can impact the entire world. Which countries are the largest producers of wheat? This graphic by Kashish Rastogi visualizes the breakdown of 20 years of global wheat production by country
Mapping The Spread Of Words Along Trade Routes In The Early History Of International Trade
When exotic goods traveled to new regions, their native names sometimes hitchhiked along with them. Naturally, the Germans have a term – Wanderwörter – for these extraordinary loanwords that journey around the globe, mutating subtly along the way. This map, produced by Haisam Hussein for Lapham’s Quarterly, charts the flow of Wanderwörter along global trade routes.
This Map Shows How Public Broadcaster Services Are Financed Across Europe
Almería’s Sea Of Greenhouses Clear Skies And Plastic Have Made It Possible For The Dry Province In Southeastern Spain To Become A Major Exporter Of Tomatoes And Other Produce
Which Asian Countries Generate Most Electricity From Nuclear Power?
The Eye Of Sahara The Richat Structure In Mauritania Is Not What You Think It Is
How Many Tanks Are In Service In Each European Country
This Map Shows The Countries With The Highest Projected GDP Growth In 2022 (As Of April 2022)
GPS Tracked Movement Of Polar Bears In The Chukchi Sea
So if people don't recognize these land masses, Chukchi Sea is the north sea between Russia and Alaska. The island in the lower middle with a lot of blue-green is St. Lawrence Island. The area between the two countries is the Bering Strait, leading to the southern Bering Sea.
Impact Of Abnormal Heat On Vote Share For Green Parties, Via The Economist
Bulgaria & Romania: More of that, please! I like to be able to cook eggs on the pavement.
What Percentage Of Europeans Has Ordered Something Online?
I didn't even knew Saxonia (the dark green part of Germany) had that big of an Internet culture. There live mostly old people I thought... Every day you learn something new!
This Map Shows The Countries Where 5g Networks Were Launched, Where 5g Technology Has Been Deployed In Mobile Networks And Where Investments In 5g Technology Have Been Made (As Of June 2022)
This Map Shows The Confirmed Monkeypox Cases Per One Million Residents Per Country
A Glint Of Southeast Asia Water Has Helped Define The Shape Of Life On The Indochinese Peninsula
A Swirl Of Dust Over The Atlantic Pulses Of Dust From The Sahara Desert Reached The Caribbean And Parts Of The United States In July
Malaria Was Common Across Half The World – Since Then It Has Been Eliminated In Many Regions
This Chart Shows Cargo And Tanker Vessels In The North Sea On June 9, 2022 9am-10am (Cet)
Mapping The Migration Of The World’s Millionaires
So, if the UK is losing them already - why are governments so worried about taxing the wealthy? I'm joking of course! It's obvious why. The government IS the wealthy.
This Chart Displays The EU Countries With The Highest Gross Government Debt As Share Of GDP In 2021
Your screen isn't wide enough to show where the USA would fit on this chart. The last time we were below 100% was when Bill Clinton was president. It's only gotten worse since.
What Percentage Of Each Asian Country’s Population Lives In Its Largest Metro Area?
These Global Cities Show The Highest Real Estate Bubble Risk, Via Visual Capitalist
Housing bubbles are a tricky phenomenon. As a market gathers steam and prices increase, it remains a matter of debate whether that market is overvalued and flooded with speculation, or it’s simply experiencing robust demand.
Of course, once a bubble bursts, it’s all obvious in hindsight.
One common red flag is when prices decouple from local incomes and rents. As well, imbalances in the real economy, such as excessive construction activity and lending can signal a bubble in the making.
Based on data from the Real Estate Bubble Index by UBS, examines 25 global cities, scoring them based on their bubble risk.
This Map Shows Rate Of Violent Crime Per 100,000 Population In 2021, By State
Can we get this done by county, I think there are some outliers changing the overall result
This Map Shows Countries By Sales Restrictions On Hormonal Contraception Pills
This Map Shows The Number Of Facilities Able To Manufacture Mrna Vaccines Outside Of The Eu/USA/Can
A bit useless. China have facilities but don't want foreign tech and still rely on they uneficient vaccine formula. So, youmay have production capacity, but political choice are more important. Let's do a map of coutries that want this pandemic to stop instead.
This Map Shows Central Bank Digital Currencies Launched, Under Development Or Considered Around The World (As Of July 2022)
European Lng Terminals, 2022
This Map Shows Traditions Around The World Where Children Go Door To Door For Treats (Trick-Or-Treating)
Danish person here and I've never heard of Rummelpot. We go on Fastelavn in the spring.
2022 French Legislative Elections, First Round Results
It must be nice to live in a country that has more than two parties... SIGH...
Elections And The Borders Of Austria-Hungary
As a color blind person I found some of these kinda hard to figure out.I'm looking for an offended color blind peoples group to boycott color coded maps.
Most computers and mobile devices have settings to adjust for red-green and blue-yellow color blindness. I'm an app developer. Apple has been educating and pushing developers to use their growing list of accessibility features. So more software should be accommodating a variety of visual and auditory needs.
Load More Replies...I'd like to point out something about these color-coded maps/graphics: "Green = good" and "red = bad" will instill a bias against those things coded in that way (or light blue vs dark blue in case of European religiosity). So that you do not see any other map without thinking of this. This is how political divides grow wider and prejudices grow. It's the psychology of statistics (AKA lies or damned lies or at least very misleading).
Also note that certain colors have triggers, both culturally and inherently. Ergo, red in the West is "dangerous", but green is "soothing"; blue is "weak"; and so forth. Lots of studies on how people react to color, and if you apply it to these graphics, you start re-thinking your own reactions. Fun thought experiment for you on Monday morning :-)
Load More Replies...I counted. Out of 35 posts, only 1 is specifically on the US. This guy is dilusional.
Load More Replies...As a color blind person I found some of these kinda hard to figure out.I'm looking for an offended color blind peoples group to boycott color coded maps.
Most computers and mobile devices have settings to adjust for red-green and blue-yellow color blindness. I'm an app developer. Apple has been educating and pushing developers to use their growing list of accessibility features. So more software should be accommodating a variety of visual and auditory needs.
Load More Replies...I'd like to point out something about these color-coded maps/graphics: "Green = good" and "red = bad" will instill a bias against those things coded in that way (or light blue vs dark blue in case of European religiosity). So that you do not see any other map without thinking of this. This is how political divides grow wider and prejudices grow. It's the psychology of statistics (AKA lies or damned lies or at least very misleading).
Also note that certain colors have triggers, both culturally and inherently. Ergo, red in the West is "dangerous", but green is "soothing"; blue is "weak"; and so forth. Lots of studies on how people react to color, and if you apply it to these graphics, you start re-thinking your own reactions. Fun thought experiment for you on Monday morning :-)
Load More Replies...I counted. Out of 35 posts, only 1 is specifically on the US. This guy is dilusional.
Load More Replies...