Names are forever Hi-tech Solution to an Age Old Heritage | Contents Page | Al-Khabar Home Page | CGIS Home Page | History tells us that people move from one place to another looking for greener pastures, food and water for their animals and themselves. With their nomadic way of life, they used the direction of the sun and the surrounding physical features to tell their present positions as well as their destinations. They also used different geographical features, vegetation and shapes to give names to their habitat. Generations later, some communities still migrate as this remains part of their day to day lives but the names allocated by ancestors still live on and continue to be used. Many of those names have been altered or modified to suit the present times while others are still preserved. To ensure preservation of all the geographical names in the State of Qatar, Centre for Geographic Information Systems (CGIS) launched the Geographic Names Project (GNP) in January 1996 aimed at including precise geographic names and locations into its national database. With the project complete, CGIS is proud to announce the release of a Digital National Archive on Geographic Names. It contains all the place names in the country along with their derivatives, text descriptions, audio (providing correct pronunciations) and video clips of features. The project required a comprehensive research countrywide. Information was gathered from reliable sources around the State but "determining and choosing these sources was probably the most difficult process," stated Sheikh Fahad Bin Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Al Thani who was in charge of co-ordinating the information sources for the project. Sheikh Fahad Bin Abdulla Bin Abdul Aziz Al Thani, Coordinated all the field activities. He identified the Nationals who are good in the given areas of Qatar. He was the person who made the project successful. The research was conducted to acquire the correct pronunciation of all place names in the country. "Many pronunciations were unclear and we were forced to return to the sources or in some cases, we approached others if not convinced by previous sources," says Hamad Muhsen Al Nuaimi, in charge of registration and documenting correct pronunciations of Geographic names. In addition to an up-dated map available at the Centre for GIS showing all the physical features and their correct spellings, the Digital Archive will allow the user to gather detailed information about their places of interest. Unlike the map, the digital archive also offers information such as the exact geographic co-ordinates (longitude and latitude) of places of interest and the distance (Km) from the nearest town or city. It can also tell the user the best and shortest route from their present position to their destination. "The road has been bumpy but this is a dream come true," says Youssef Essa, Head of the Street Naming Unit who is also Acting Assistant Head of the Land Information Centre (LIC). "History fascinates me, so I always wanted to see all the names in Qatar documented accurately. Seeing it stored digitally gives me even more pleasure." "In our computer craze world of today, this Digital Archive is a nucleus for future generations," comments Dr Mohammed Khalifa Al Kuwari, Head of Urban and Regional Planning Unit at the University of Qatar. "Students can easily access the information and discover their country's history as well as its geography." "This project could not have been completed at a better time considering the rate at which urbanisation and industrialisation is taking place in the country," remarks Abdul Salam Mohammed, head of the project. "Computerising all this data will provide everyone simple access to all the information they require on the names in Qatar." "Relentless effort has been put into this project. Collecting and archiving correct geographic data is essential for future generations because it is a record of the heritage and culture of the Qatari people," states Al Thani. Mr. Hamad Bin Muhsain Al Noaimi, Coordinated the interviews with people for root word meaning, corrected the names, and pronounciation recordings. His role was also vital as far as the data recording is concerned. In the words of Al Nuaimi, "the data collected during this project is as accurate as it can be and it is important that the coming generations preserve it. It reflects their history, culture, tradition and heritage." A Multimedia CD will be released with similar facilities at a later date. There are also plans to have the Archive reach global heights as the data will be made available on the Internet. | Contents Page | Al-Khabar Home Page | CGIS Home Page |