World Map (South on Top)




	Special thanks to Gigi Paterson Nations of the World - South on top

	Conventional maps put north on top, and we are all trained to envision the world in this orientation. Historic maps from Europe and Asia have coincidentally used this convention, perhaps because most empires are in the Northern Hemisphere, and to them, north means cold and unexplored lands, and so north is on top. However, a map is just as accurate with south on top, (or even east or west for that matter). Study this map carefully, try to locate a few countries, chances are even the most experienced map-users will be disoriented. This shows the importance of references to well-known geographic features on maps (in this case, it is the outlines of continents).