The Application of Geographic Information System(GIS) to the Study of Chinese History

Historical geographic information system construction echoes the call of academic development in the information era and demonstrates the in-depth advancement of history studies. In recent years, an increasing number of data platforms have been built to facilitate historical information storage, display, management and analysis. In such a context, the geographic information system(GIS) begins to contribute to the study of Chinese history. Its contribution is highlighted in nine areas: historical climate, fluvial landforms, town economies, rural settlements, hydraulic societies, environmental changes, ancient cities, ancient maps and HGIS-enabled research methods. The application of GIS to the study of Chinese history initiates a reform in research methods and at the same time upgrades the philosophy of history studies, facilitating the utilization of a diversity of historical data(documents, ancient maps, remote-sensing images, archaeological information, etc.) for dynamic tracing and multi-factor comprehensive research. At present, restricted by traditional disciplinary boundaries, the construction of HGIS platforms remains slow and insufficient, making it difficult to extensively apply GIS to the study of Chinese history.