Extending Metadata Standards for Historical GIS Research

Abstract

This article proposes a structure for handling commonly observed uncertainties in geo-historical data, using as case studies two historical geographical information systems (HGIS) projects that interweave historical research with the geography of genocide. The first case involves the ghettoization of Budapest's Jews during the Holocaust in the second half of 1944. The more recent work, and the second case, covers the Armenian genocide spanning most of WWI and several years afterwards. The authors suggest using existing metadata standards as one way of handling the inherent uncertainties of geo-historical sources. While not a definitive solution, they argue that such an approach provides a starting point and a platform to conceptually frame the use of geo-historical data in HGIS.