The Wendish Research Exchange - Langer, Marcel: Between Constructions of the Philosophy and Spatial Perceptions of the Sorbian/Wendish Settlement Area. What...

Lětopis Abstract 2021 1: Langer, Marcel: Between Constructions of the Philosophy and Spatial Perceptions of the Sorbian/Wendish Settlement Area. What We Can Learn from Critical Cartography

Everyday procedures in life are increasingly linked to the use of maps and cartographical representations. The aim of this article is to promote a critical discussion of the medium of maps and cartographical representations of the Sorbs/Wends in Lusatia. On the one hand, the role of maps and their influence on our perception of spaces is analyzed. On the other hand, reasons for developing a more sensitive view of maps are initiated. Is it furthermore our goal to establish the criteria according to which the relevant maps were drawn up? Is there information missing from cartographical representations? What further elements need to be portrayed? The article approaches the sovereign interpretation of maps with a number of different questions and demonstrates the need for maps to be deconstructed, in order to open up a greater sensitization of the way in which we approach maps.