The Off Topic Topic

[Admiral Yi]

I mean.

[Josquius]

[Iormlund]

Neat.

[Maladict]

Spain borders Morocco and the UK 

[Syt]

Spain borders Morocco and the UK 

Here's the original reddit thread if you want to complain.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comments/gxwn5r/oc_the_topologists_map_of_the_world_a_map_showing/

Inspired by this map of the USA (by Sian Zelbo), I decided to make a world map in a similar style. Countries are shaped and positioned according only to which countries (and seas) they border.

If you'd like a challenge, here's a version without country labels, and if you'd like a slightly smaller challenge, here's one with only a few labels.

I made this in Inkscape, and put a brief write-up here, if you're interested. Please let me know if you find any errors/typos.

A few caveats: I had to ignore a few exclaves and territories to make this map at all feasible. Most notably, Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast, the Spanish exclaves in Morocco, the Angolan exclave that borders the Republic of the Congo, the British Mediterranean exclaves (Gibraltar and the two on Cyprus), and - the biggest and baddest - French Guyana.

[The Brain]

A Topologist? Is that like a Belieber?

[Barrister]

Spain borders Morocco and the UK 

"Exclaves have been otherwise ignored".

[FunkMonk]

Need to fix that border gore

[Duque de Bragança]

Spain borders Morocco and the UK 

"Exclaves have been otherwise ignored".

Gibraltar is not part of the UK, but a British Overseas Territory.   

[Valmy]

Could that country be more convoluted?

The answer is no, it could not be. If you designed a country to be unnecessarily complicated it would be hard to outdue...whatever that country is called. There is no one term that seems to apply to the whole thing. Even what it is called is complicated and convoluted.

"The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and its territories and dependencies."

Does that cover it or are there a few more qualifiers one must throw in there?

[The Larch]

Could that country be more convoluted?

The answer is no, it could not be. If you designed a country to be unnecessarily complicated it would be hard to outdue...whatever that country is called. There is no one term that seems to apply to the whole thing. Even what it is called is complicated and convoluted.

"The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and its territories and dependencies."

Does that cover it or are there a few more qualifiers one must throw in there?

CGP Grey covered the UK's territorial weirdness already. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10

[Duque de Bragança]

"Exclaves have been otherwise ignored".

see above

[Sheilbh]

CGP Grey covered the UK's territorial weirdness already. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10

That video is slightly wrong on the use of "British Isles". The Irish government, Ireland and Irish people generally do not recognise the term "British Isles" at all. They will normally use "Britain and Ireland", the "Atlantic Archipelago", "Islands of the North Atlantic" (or IONA which is nice because it's also the name of the island Irish missionaries landed on to Christianise the Scots - so a moment of encounter) or "these isles" instead. In formal documents between the British and Irish government the normal phrase is "these isles" or "these islands". The point being that "British Isles" was a political expression - it only starts to be used following British domination of Ireland - and not a neutral geographic expression. That domination has (mostly) ended and the second largest island within the "British Isles" objects to the term so we shouldn't use it

[Valmy]

CGP Grey covered the UK's territorial weirdness already. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10

That video is slightly wrong on the use of "British Isles". The Irish government, Ireland and Irish people generally do not recognise the term "British Isles" at all. They will normally use "Britain and Ireland", the "Atlantic Archipelago", "Islands of the North Atlantic" (or IONA which is nice because it's also the name of the island Irish missionaries landed on to Christianise the Scots - so a moment of encounter) or "these isles" instead. In formal documents between the British and Irish government the normal phrase is "these isles" or "these islands". The point being that "British Isles" was a political expression - it only starts to be used following British domination of Ireland - and not a neutral geographic expression. That domination has (mostly) ended and the second largest island within the "British Isles" objects to the term so we shouldn't use it

See? How crazy is this shit?

Even the geographic terms are convoluted and unclear. "These Isles" or "Atlantic Archipelago" could refer to dozens of other places in the world. Come on come up with something descriptive and clear if you...um...Brit-Manx-Jersey-Guernsey-Irish-Sheltlanders or whatever you are collectively called...can manage it.

Looking it up it seems the term British Isles comes from the Greeks and it was in use before Julius Caesar arrived. So does it matter at all that the Irish are completely wrong about this? Probably not. Nationalists don't care about facts. Actually that might be the solution, we just dig up the ancient Greek or Roman term for the islands and use that...Prettanic Isles. You can live on the Prettanic Isles. Meh. Still better than "Atlantic Archipelago" which sounds like you are referring to the Azores or something.

[Valmy]

But whatever is decided on please don't use some bland committee corporate branding nonsense like "Atlantic Archipelago". Find some other historic term that actually applies to the place and actually has some cultural relevence.

Atlantic Archipelago  how loathsome. I would think the Irish would have more creativity and poetry than that bland shit.

Sorry for getting so worked up but this is European bullshit to the extreme. The whole thing. The inability to name the country, the inability to name the geographic location even after thousands of years of occupation by human beings. God damnit. Just like Greece refusing to allow Macedonia to call itself by its name. And the English think they are not Europeans. 

And I bet just by referring to the people living in the place called England as English probably pisses somebody off. Like some douches in Cornwall are all like "This isn't England we aren't English!!111" Because Europe.