Ontological considerations in GIScience

Abstract

Ontology is a significant research theme in GIScience. While some researchers believe that the progress in GIScience is being directed through an engagement with the concept of ontology, some dismiss it as irrelevant. This paper is aimed at (i) exploring the theoretical and practical roles of ontologies; (ii) making the definitions and terminology explicit; (iii) assessing the applicability of ontology to problems in the geographical domain; and (iv) assessing whether a unified approach to ontology exists in GIScience. The results will be helpful for GIScientists in (i) understanding the validity of employing ontology within their own work, (ii) assessing what operational framework of terms and methods to use for developing their own ontology, and (iii) to assess what existing ontological models are available and applicable within their domain or application. A comprehensive and critical review will also help in identifying the signficant issues and directing future research agenda in GIScience.

Keywords:

• Ontology
• Geographic
• Semantics
• Concepts
• Inter‐operability

Acknowledgements

I am thankful to Prof. Peter Fisher and the three anonymous reviewers for their constructive feedback that helped improve the quality of the paper. I also wish to thank Prof. Mike Goodchild and Prof. Roy Haines‐Young for their comments on the initial drafts of the paper. All mistakes are, however, solely mine.