The aim of the HisGIS project is to create an infrastructure for analyzing and presenting historical geodata for the Netherlands, based on the smallest geographical unit: the plot (‘perceel’). Its foundation lies in the Land Registry (‘kadaster’) from 1832, which covers the entire Netherlands. The design of HisGIS stems from a project that was set up in 1988 by Hans Mol and Paul Noomen (both FA): the Cadastral and Pre-Cadastral Atlas of Friesland. This was an analogue publication, published in 17 volumes between 1988 and 2003.  

In 1998, work began on digitizing the Frisian parts of the 1832 Land Registry, a project that was completed in 2005. Numerous new maps and information layers were added as an extension. The methodology and design of the digital Frisian HisGIS was progressive and based on the technical possibilities at the time. During the Deltaplan Project (2016-2019), which aimed to gain insight into the revision of the Land Registry of 1887, a start was made to be the first to re-georeference the 1832 map. This would then serve as the basis for the 1887 Land Registry. The entire process of improvements ultimately led to the map being ready at the beginning of 2020. 

HisGIS Netherlands (2011-2022) 

After the province of Fryslân had been successfully digitized, the other Dutch provinces were approached by the HisGIS project team of the Fryske Akademy. Each separate project demanded collaboration with specific provincial organisations and fundings.  

The province of Groningen was the first to be put into the HisGIS system in 2010, after which the other provinces followed: Utrecht (2011), Overijssel (2012), Noord-Holland (2013), Drenthe (2016), Noord-Brabant (2017), Gelderland (2018), Limburg (2019), Zeeland (2020), Zuid-Holland (2020). 

HisGIS and HuC KNAW (2022-2023) 

Because of the growing interest in Spatial Humanities, the success and importance of HisGIS was noticed by the KNAW, who suggested a collaboration with the Fryske Akademy in order to host the HisGIS Netherlands infrastructure. Since the Dutch HisGIS had grown beyond the scope of research of the Fryske Akademy, this request was welcomed.  

HisGIS Fryslân: 2023 and beyond 

The intention is that after the transfer of HisGIS to the KNAW Humanities Cluster (HUC), the Fryske Akademy can build on the acquired expertise and infrastructure that has emerged from the HisGIS project. To this end, efforts are being made to consolidate and make the geo-expertise of the Fryske Akademy more sustainable through the development of a new geo-platform focused on research into the Frisian case: HisGIS Fryslân.  

The Fryske Akademy will continue with the management and further development of the enrichment layers that relate to the Frisian case, i.e. the historical research into the historic “Frisian” coastal area. This requires a temporary investment so that in the coming years the Fryske Akademy can focus on strengthening the geo-infrastructure for new project applications for research into the Frisian case.  

This new vision for HisGIS, which envisions an evolution towards a central geo-platform HisGIS Fryslân for the Fryske Akademy, means that the Fryske Akademy’s  geo-expertise can be made into a connecting node for research at the Fryske Akademy. This emphasizes the affinity between the various research themes of the Fryske Akademy and their relationship to the Spatial Humanities. Since all Fryske Akademy research themes have a geo component, it makes sense to centralize the infrastructure and make it accessible on one public portal.  

Chances

The safeguarding and development of the geo-expertise of the Fryske Akademy is in line with the Research Agenda, in which the Digital Humanities are regarded as a supporting basis for the research themes. The ambition is that every research group at the Fryske Akademy can store research data with a spatial component on our own geo-platform, without having to build new ICT infrastructure. 

A new design of HisGIS also offers opportunities for new research into the Frisian historical cultural landscape, natural landscape and linguistic landscape. Spatial disclosure of landscape (roads, waters, reclamation axes, subdivision blocks) and linguistic datasets as well as the mapping of historical documents and historical writing centers are powerful research tools for which funding can be sought in future research applications. For this purpose, the Fryske Akademy can collaborate with partners such as Tresoar, Stichting Alde Fryske Tsjerken and Steunpunt Monumentenzorg Friesland.