Map Work: World Map | ICSE Class 9 Geography Notes

This note covers Map Work for ICSE Class 9 Geography. The CISCE syllabus sets the Class 9 map work on an outline map of the World: candidates locate, mark and name a fixed list of natural regions, water bodies, rivers, mountains and plateaus. The note gives that list exactly as the syllabus prints it, says where each feature lies, and shows how to mark it. The interpretation of topographical maps and the outline map of India belong to the Class 10 syllabus, so they are not covered here.

What does map work in Class 9 cover?

The syllabus states that, on an outline map of the World, candidates will be required to locate, mark and name features from five groups. Nothing outside these five lists needs to be learnt for the map question.

Note: Use the syllabus spellings in the examination: Zaire (the river is also called the Congo), Hwang Ho (also written Huang He), Yangtse Kiang (also written Chang Jiang), Drakensburg (also written Drakensberg) and Khinghan (also written Khingan). Your atlas may print the newer names, so learn both.

Which lines and landmasses help you place a feature?

An outline map of the World shows only the coastlines. Every feature has to be placed by reference to the shape of the continents and to a few important lines of latitude and longitude. Learn where these lines cross the continents before you learn the features.

Using the coastline

The seven continents and their coastlines are the second aid. Most features on the list sit at a place that the coastline itself points to: a gulf is a bend in the coast, a strait is a narrow gap between two landmasses, and a river ends where the coast shows a mouth or a delta.

Note: The Equator and the Prime Meridian meet in the Gulf of Guinea, off the west coast of Africa. This one point fixes the Gulf of Guinea, and tells you that the Niger enters the sea just north of the Equator.

How do you mark and name a feature on an outline map?

The three verbs in the syllabus are separate tasks: you locate the right place, mark it with a line, a symbol or shading, and name it with a label. Follow the same steps each time.

1. Read the question and note what kind of feature it is: a river, a range of mountains, a plateau, a water body or a natural region.
2. Find the continent and then the part of the continent, using the coastline and the lines of latitude.
3. Mark the feature in the way that suits its kind: a line for a river, a line of peaks for a mountain range, shading for a plateau or a natural region.
4. Write the name neatly beside the mark, along the direction of the feature where possible.
5. If the feature is too small for the name, write the name in the nearest open space and join it to the feature with an arrow.
6. Check that the name is spelt as the syllabus spells it.

How each kind of feature is shown

Note: A river must reach the correct sea, and a mountain range must run in the correct direction. A river that stops short of the coast, or a range drawn across the continent instead of along it, shows the examiner that the location has not been learnt.

Where are the oceans, seas, gulfs and straits?

The oceans

The five major oceans are the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Indian, the Arctic and the Southern Ocean.

Seas, gulfs, a bay and straits

Start at the Strait of Gibraltar, the narrow gap between Spain and Morocco. East of it the Mediterranean Sea stretches between Europe and Africa. At its north-eastern end, north of Turkey, lies the Black Sea.

Further east, and not joined to the sea at all, is the Caspian Sea, with the Caucasus mountains in the land between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. South-east of the Black Sea and south of the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Arabia, is the Persian Gulf. The North Sea is separate from this chain: it lies far to the north-west, between Great Britain and the European mainland.

Note: Each of the three straits joins two water bodies and separates two landmasses. Learn all four names for each strait, because a question may ask for either pair.

Where are the rivers of the Americas and Africa?

Nine of the 23 rivers are in the Americas and Africa. Learn each with its direction of flow and its mouth.

The Nile is the only one of the five that flows north, to the Mediterranean coast of Egypt. The Niger makes an arc in the bulge of West Africa and ends in the Gulf of Guinea. The Zaire curves through the centre of the continent, astride the Equator, and reaches the Atlantic on the west coast.

Further south, the Zambezi flows east to the Indian Ocean, and the Orange flows west to the Atlantic. So of the two southern rivers, the Zambezi is the one on the east and the Orange is the one on the west.

Note: In North America, do not send the Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico. The Mississippi ends in the Gulf of Mexico. The Colorado ends on the other side of the continent, in the Gulf of California.

Where are the rivers of Europe, Asia and Australia?

The other 14 rivers are in Europe, Asia and Australia. Nine of them are in Asia.

Pairs of rivers that are easy to confuse

Four pairs of rivers are easy to confuse. The table sets each pair side by side.

Where are the mountain ranges?

For a mountain range, learn two things: the side of the continent on which it lies, and the direction in which it runs.

Both continents have their highest mountains on the western side. In North America the Rockies run down the west, and the lower Appalachian mountains run down the east, with the plains of the Mississippi between them.

In South America the Andes follow the Pacific coast from the north of the continent to its southern tip, so the Amazon, which rises in the Andes, has to cross almost the whole width of the continent to reach the Atlantic.

Note: Draw each range in its own direction. The Rockies, Andes, Urals and Great Dividing Range run north to south. The Pyrenees run west to east. The Himalayas and the Alps are curved, so draw them as arcs.

Where are the plateaus?

One of the six plateaus is in North America, two are in South America and three are in Asia.

Fixing a plateau by its neighbours

A plateau is shown as an area, not as a line. Shade a patch of the right size and place. At least four of the six plateaus can be fixed by a mountain range or a water body that is also on the syllabus list.

Where are the major natural regions of the world?

The eight natural regions are studied in detail in the chapter on Natural Regions of the World. For map work you need their location: the latitudes in which each region lies, the side of the continent it occupies, and the main areas to shade. The latitudes given are approximate.

Moving north from the Equator through Africa and Europe, the regions follow one another in order. The equatorial region lies in the Zaire basin. North of it come the tropical grasslands, and north of them the tropical desert of the Sahara. The Mediterranean type lies on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea.

Further north and east, in the interior, are the temperate grasslands of the Steppes. Beyond them the Taiga forms a belt across northern Europe and Russia, and the Tundra lines the Arctic coast.

Note: Two regions share the same latitudes on opposite sides of a continent. In the tropics, the deserts are on the western side and the monsoon lands on the eastern side. The Taiga and the Tundra are marked only in the Northern Hemisphere.

How do the features fix one another?

Many features on the list touch each other. If you know one, you can place the other. Use these links to check a map before you hand it in.

Glossary

• Outline map — A map that shows only the outlines of the continents, on which features are to be marked and named.
• Locate — To find the correct position of a feature on the map, using the coastline and lines of latitude and longitude.
• Natural region — A large area of the earth with broadly similar climate and natural vegetation, such as the Equatorial region or the Taiga.
• Strait — A narrow passage of water that joins two larger water bodies and separates two landmasses.
• Gulf — A large inlet of the sea that cuts into the land, such as the Gulf of Mexico.
• Mouth of a river — The place where a river ends by flowing into a sea, a lake or another river.
• Tributary — A river that flows into a larger river, as the Darling flows into the Murray.
• Plateau — A broad area of high, fairly level land, marked on a map as a shaded patch.
• Tropic of Cancer — The line of latitude 23½° north of the Equator, which crosses Mexico, the Sahara, Arabia and India.
• Arctic Circle — The line of latitude 66½° north of the Equator; the Tundra lies mainly to the north of it.
• Key — The list on a map that explains what each kind of shading or symbol stands for.

Common errors and misconceptions

• Misconception: Class 9 map work includes topographical maps and the map of India. Correct: The Class 9 syllabus sets map work on an outline map of the World. The interpretation of topographical maps and the outline map of India are Class 10 map work. Class 9 has only the outline map of the World in the written paper, and the internal assessment file adds practical exercises on scale, contours and atlas maps.
• Misconception: The Colorado flows into the Gulf of Mexico. Correct: The Mississippi flows into the Gulf of Mexico. The Colorado flows into the Gulf of California.
• Misconception: The Nile flows south. Correct: The Nile flows north, through Sudan and Egypt, into the Mediterranean Sea.
• Misconception: The Volga flows into the Black Sea. Correct: The Volga flows into the Caspian Sea. The Danube flows into the Black Sea.
• Misconception: The Yangtse Kiang is north of the Hwang Ho. Correct: The Hwang Ho is the northern river. The Yangtse Kiang flows across central China, to its south.
• Misconception: The Strait of Gibraltar joins the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. Correct: It joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Spain and Morocco.
• Misconception: Tropical deserts lie on the eastern sides of the continents. Correct: They lie on the western sides. The monsoon lands lie on the eastern sides in the same latitudes.
• Misconception: The Taiga occurs in both hemispheres. Correct: The Taiga is found only in the Northern Hemisphere, as a belt across Canada, Scandinavia and Russia.

Exam-style questions with model answers

Q1. Name the water bodies joined by the Strait of Malacca and the landmasses it separates. [2 marks]

1. The Strait of Malacca joins the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.
2. It separates the Malay Peninsula from the island of Sumatra.

Q2. Into which water bodies do the Rhine and the Danube flow? [2 marks]

1. The Rhine flows north through Germany and the Netherlands into the North Sea.
2. The Danube flows east across central and south-eastern Europe into the Black Sea.

Q3. How would you mark the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau on an outline map of the World? [2 marks]

1. Draw the Himalayas as an arc along the north of the Indian subcontinent and write the name along it.
2. Shade a patch immediately north of this arc for the Tibetan Plateau and name it, because a plateau is shown as an area.

Q4. Name three rivers of Africa on the syllabus list and the water body into which each flows. [3 marks]

1. The Nile flows north through Sudan and Egypt into the Mediterranean Sea.
2. The Niger flows through West Africa into the Gulf of Guinea.
3. The Zambezi flows east across southern Africa into the Indian Ocean. (The Zaire and the Orange, which both flow into the Atlantic Ocean, are also acceptable.)

Q5. State the location of the Mediterranean type of natural region and name three areas where it is found. [3 marks]

1. The Mediterranean type lies between about 30° and 45° north and south of the Equator, on the western sides of the continents.
2. It is found in the lands around the Mediterranean Sea.
3. It is also found in central California, central Chile, the south-western tip of Africa and the south-west and south of Australia (any two of these).

Q6. Distinguish between the positions of the Rockies, the Appalachian mountains and the Andes. [3 marks]

1. The Rockies lie along the western side of North America, running north to south through Canada and the United States.
2. The Appalachian mountains lie along the eastern side of the United States, parallel to the Atlantic coast.
3. The Andes lie along the western edge of South America, running north to south beside the Pacific coast.

Q7. Describe the steps you would follow to locate, mark and name the river Amazon on an outline map of the World. [5 marks]

1. Identify the kind of feature: the Amazon is a river, so it will be shown as a line.
2. Locate it: find South America, and then the Equator, which crosses the north of the continent.
3. Find the source region, the Andes, on the western edge of the continent, and the mouth, on the Atlantic coast at the Equator.
4. Mark it: draw a single line from the Andes eastwards across northern Brazil to the Atlantic Ocean, close to the Equator.
5. Name it: write "Amazon" neatly along the line, and check the spelling against the syllabus list.

Q8. On an outline map of the World, which features would you mark in and around Europe from the syllabus list? State the position of each. [5 marks]

1. Seas: the North Sea between Great Britain and the mainland; the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Africa; the Black Sea north of Turkey; and the Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco.
2. Rivers: the Rhine flowing north to the North Sea, the Danube flowing east to the Black Sea, and the Volga flowing south to the Caspian Sea.
3. Mountains within Europe: the Alps in an arc in south-central Europe, the Pyrenees between France and Spain, and the Scandinavian Highlands through Norway and Sweden.
4. Mountains on the edge of Europe: the Urals running north to south in Russia, and the Caucasus between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.
5. Natural regions: the Mediterranean type on the southern coasts, the Taiga across the north, and the Tundra along the Arctic coast.

Key takeaways

• Class 9 map work is on an outline map of the World; candidates locate, mark and name natural regions, water bodies, rivers, mountains and plateaus.
• The syllabus lists 8 natural regions, all major oceans with 14 other water bodies, 23 rivers, 14 mountain ranges and 6 plateaus.
• Place features with the coastline and with the Equator, the two Tropics at 23½°, the Arctic Circle at 66½° N and the Prime Meridian.
• Draw a river as a line from source to mouth, a mountain range along its direction, and a plateau or natural region as a shaded area.
• Each strait joins two water bodies and separates two landmasses: Bering, Gibraltar and Malacca must be learnt with all four names.
• Learn each river with the sea it enters: the Volga enters the Caspian Sea, the Danube the Black Sea and the Rhine the North Sea.
• Tropical deserts and the Mediterranean type lie on the western sides of continents; the Taiga and Tundra are marked only in the Northern Hemisphere.
• Use the syllabus spellings, such as Zaire, Hwang Ho, Yangtse Kiang, Drakensburg and Khinghan, even if the atlas prints newer names.

Test yourself

Which two water bodies does the Bering Strait join?

The Bering Strait joins the Arctic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, between Asia and North America.

Into which sea does the Volga flow?

The Volga flows south through the European part of Russia into the Caspian Sea.

Which river on the list crosses the Equator twice?

The Zaire, in central Africa, crosses the Equator twice before it reaches the Atlantic Ocean.

Which mountains lie between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea?

The Caucasus mountains lie in the land between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.

Which plateau is spread around Hudson Bay?

The Canadian Shield, in Canada, is spread around Hudson Bay.

Of the Tigris and the Euphrates, which lies to the east?

The Tigris is the eastern river of the pair, nearer Iran, and the Euphrates is the western river.

On which side of the continents do the tropical deserts lie?

The tropical deserts lie on the western sides of the continents, between about 15° and 30° north and south.

Which natural region lies along the shores of the Arctic Ocean?

The Tundra lies along the shores of the Arctic Ocean, mainly north of the Arctic Circle.