FACTS ON FILE : WORLD GEOGRAPHY & CULTURE A global approach to the study of countries, places, peoples, and geography concepts and skills. Includes maps, flags, and images. If you're using this resource on your home computer, you'll have to enter your name, library card barcode, and PIN to begin.
Asia : Country Profiles - 'A quick guide to the history, politics and economic background of Asian and Asia-Pacific countries.' (Asia Society; non-profit educational organization)
Assignment : New Jersey - A good basic history of the state, arranged by time periods, plus a timeline, fast facts, maps, symbols, and famous firsts. Middle school and up (State of New Jersey). For more on New Jersey, as well as information about South Plainfield, see our Local Information page.
California : Calisphere - Primary sources (photographs, documents, newspaper clippings, political cartoons, art, and other cultural artifacts) that explore California's role in national and world history. Brief overviews of each topic provide historical context for images. (University of California)
Canadian Encyclopedia - The complete illustrated text of The Canadian Encyclopedia, 'a first source for information on all Canadian topics.' Released in enhanced digital interactive form in October 2013. (Historic Canada, 'the largest, independent organization dedicated to Canadian history, identity and citizenship.')
China in Brief - Basic facts about mainland China, including history, flag, emblem, anthem, population, languages, animal, flower, holidays, and more. (2006, Official Website of the Chinese Government)
Country Studies - In-depth descriptions and analysis of the history and the social, economic, political, and national security systems and institutions of many countries throughout the world. Does not include Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and other Western nations, as well as a number of African nations. NOTE : These profiles have not been updated since they were created in 1988-98. The site also contains some Country Profiles, created 2005-2008; PDF format. High school and up (Library of Congress). Check out the World Fact Book, below, for up-to-date information.
County & City Data Book - Official population, housing, business and other data for all U.S. counties, cities with 25,000 or more inhabitants, and places of 2,500 or more inhabitants. Includes links to additional information on US states and counties; in PDF format. NOTE : County & City Data Book is no longer being published; 2007 is the last edition. The Census FactFinder includes data from the 2010 Census, the American Community Survey, the Economic Census, population, housing, and more. Type a state, county, city, town, or zip code in the search box for popular facts and frequently requested data on a specific location. High school and up. (U.S. Census Bureau)
Democracy Web NEW! - Interactive world map and online study guide for comparing the state of political rights and civil liberties in different countries around the world. College and advanced high school students. (Albert Shanker Institute and Freedom House)
European Union at a Glance - Explains what the European Union is and how it was formed, plus Key Facts & figures about Europe and the Europeans, and maps and brief descriptions of each member country. (2010 - 2014, European Union official site)
Flags and Maps of the World - Flags for each country, plus a map and a basic overview of geography, people, government, economy, and more. Updated frequently (U.S. Central Intelligence Agency). Flags of the World displays the official flag for each country, with explanations of symbols, as well as historical flags, military flags, coats of arms, and lots of other flag-related info. Also includes flag outlines you can print and color in. All ages (1994 - 2014; volunteer-maintained site).
Geography Dictionary & Glossary - Defines hundreds of terms used in geography and related disciplines; high school and up. (2005 - 2014, by Danny Harrington, ITS Tutorial School, Hong Kong)
Geography Web Games INTERACTIVE - Play these free games to test and improve your knowledge of geography (Sheppard Software; site includes advertisements). Test your knowledge of capitals around the world by taking the World Capitals Quiz INTERACTIVE and the U.S. State Capitals Quiz INTERACTIVE (2001 - 2011, Michigan State University).
Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names® Online - Find geographic coordinates (latitude & longitude), official & alternate names, and other information about more than a million places around the world. [Enter town/city name in 'Find Name or ID' box and country name in 'Nation' box.] (J. Paul Getty Trust)
India - Provides a basic profile of India, plus information about Indian culture & heritage, national symbols, India & the World, and more. (Official Portal of the Indian Government)
License Plates of the World - Photos of license plates from all US states and countries around the world; includes specialty plates, historic plates, and links to Motor Vehicle Departments and related sites. (By Michael Kustermann, license plate collector; site includes advertisements)
Mapmaker Maps (Printable) - Click on the drop-down menu for the region or country you want for a good map you can download and/or print. Use the menus to customize maps with names, borders, and other features. (1996 - 2014, National Geographic)
Map Outlines - Printable map outlines of the world, regions, and countries, in PDF format. (2008, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company)
Maps : Finding Our Place in the World - Explores the history of maps and mapmaking, with text and images. (2007, Field Museum)
Maps Online - A huge collection of online maps of the world and specific regions and countries, including relief maps and historical maps, as well as maps related to current events; high school and up (University of Texas).
Maps : U.S. National Map UPDATED LINK! INTERACTIVE - Interactive maps of the US on a variety of topics including environment, agriculture, history, people, geology, and climate, and printable US reference and outline maps (U.S. Department of the Interior). NOTE : The Printable Maps that were available from nationalatlas.gov will be available from nationalmap.gov after September 30, 2014.
Maps : World Region & Country Maps - Printable maps in PDF format. (United Nations)
Pictures of Places - Need a picture of the Eiffel Tower, the Lincoln Memorial, the Taj Mahal, or the Leaning Tower of Pisa? This site links to thousands of great printable pictures of places all over the world. Arranged by state / country / region (MindTravellers Inc.; site includes advertisements). Cities Around the World : Photographs has thousands of photographs from the slide collections of the American Geographical Society (University of Wisconsin).
Population Clocks (U.S. and World) - Constantly updated estimates of U.S. and world population. (U.S. Census Bureau)
State Facts for Students - Quick facts on each of the 50 states - population, geography, business, and more; for kids aged 8-12. (U.S. Census Bureau)
Times Topics : Places VIDEO - Click the name of a country, state, or other location, to view recent and archival news about that place. Formerly News by Country and Territory. (New York Times; site includes advertisements)
United Nations News Centre - Current news about the U.N.; high school and up.
World Fact Book - Flags, maps, photos, and up-to-date overviews of all countries, plus statistics on geography, environment, government, economy, people, transportation, communication, and the military. Maps, flags, and photos for all ages; text and data for high school and up. Use the drop-down menu to choose a country or territory. (U.S. Central Intelligence Agency)
World Leaders - This site lists the names of current foreign government leaders; arranged alphabetically by country and updated weekly. (U.S. Central Intelligence Agency)
World Mapper - 'A collection of world maps, where territories are re-sized on each map according to the subject of interest.' Includes a brief explanation for each map. Provides quick visual representations for topics such as total births, total elderly population, religion, exports / imports, forest growth / loss, tourism profits, and many more subjects. High school and up (SASI Group, University of Sheffield & Mark Newman, University of Michigan, et al.). See also Data Visualizations NEW! for U.S. topics (U.S. Census Bureau).
Worldwise Schools - Stories, letters, folk tales, and poems from Peace Corps Volunteers around the world; you can search the collection by grade, region, or subject (Peace Corps).