Just How Big is Africa?
Monday, February 14th, 2011I heard a new term recently that sparked my interest: “Immappancy.” I’m not sure who coined the term, but it refers to our collective lack of geographical knowledge, due in large part to the distorted scales found on most common maps. According to renowned German software designer Kai Krause, nowhere is this more apparent than in people’s perceptions of Africa. Indeed, I freely admit I was flummoxed by the image Mr. Krause constructed to prove his point (see below).
America is a large place. So are India, China. In fact, these are our world’s 3 largest nations measured by total area. Place those 3 landmasses within the continent of Africa we are left with enough extra room to throw in the entire continent of Europe! It’s a great way to put the sheer scale of this continent into perspective and show just how vast and varied its rainbow of nations and cultures is. It helps explain how, in all my years of travel to Africa, I still feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface!
Craig
