Map and status policy
This atlas is a statistical and cartographic reference. It is not a recognition of legal claims, and it does not take a national point of view as its default world map.
- Names and classifications
- Directory and profile headers always show a descriptive classification: UN member, UN observer, associated state, dependency, special administrative region, territory, statistical area, or special status. Classification is not a sovereignty verdict.
- Default geometry
- The globe uses Natural Earth’s de facto cartography, except where disputed areas are overlaid so that observer and special-status entities remain independently selectable — including Palestine, Taiwan, Kosovo, and Western Sahara. We do not ship a national point-of-view tileset as the default.
- Dispute lines
- Dispute lines stay visible and explained. They are not restyled into ordinary international borders, and fills do not imply a legal outcome.
- Hidden-area policy
- Populated, statistically tracked areas are not omitted because they are politically awkward.
- Natural Earth
- Made with Natural Earth. Geometry is public domain.