Abstract:

Hill shading is one method to show the rise and fall of landscape. It appeared in mid 17th century in Europe. In the late Qing Dynasty, hill shading was introduced to China through translations. But it didn’t have a proper name at that time, sometimes called “new method” or “method of oblique light”. During the period of the Republic of China, the word “hill shading” appeared. According to the author’s textual research, “hill shading” may come from Japanese books. There were also other aliases at the same time, such as “coloring method”, “hatching method”, “shade of color”, etc.. After the founding of PRC, the term “hill shading” became the mainstream, while “hatching” and “shadow” still existed. In the 1980s, the name of “hill shading” was settled with the spread of hill shading knowledge and promotion of hill shading maps.

Key words: hill shading, shaded relief, history of cartography