地圖是地表空間資訊之最佳記錄與表現，故爲地學研究不可或缺的重要工具。由於地圖無法對空間環境作等大尺度表示，因此須以特定比例來對空間資訊做扼要選取，以利閱讀；此摘要之過程受地圖比例尺、製圖目的、資料內容及圖形限制等因素所影響，其成果之展現也賦予不同的環境認知。人類對環境之認知與利用，必須架構在空間位置之上，而此定位方式主要分爲兩類：一爲數學定位，即坐標定位；另一爲地理定位，即地名定位；前者主要爲測繪之具體成果。而後者則符合人類實際使用之所需。由於地名爲地理實體之名稱，且具多重之地理屬性資料，人們可藉由地名之判讀而能認知該區域之背景意義。故而，地名之於地圖。實具「畫龍點睛」之效；因此地名選取恰當與否，將造成用圖者對空間環境認知之差異。本文即以臺灣地區六種不同比例尺之地形圖爲依據，探討地名數量、等級，密度等要素與比例尺間之關聯，以了解臺灣地區地圖地名簡化之特徵。作爲地圖使用、數值製圖及地理資訊系統發展之參考。

Maps are best tool for recording and representing of spatial data, and constitute the essential part of geo-sciences. Mapping data should be generalized for the need of visibility when map scale decreased, and the processes of abstracting are controlled by map scale, purpose, data content, and graphic constraint. So the appearances of maps of same region are different, thus forms different cognition of environment by map-readers. The processes of environmental development and cognition by human should be geo-referenced, which can be divided into two parts, the first is mathematical positioning, means coordinate-positioning; the other is geographical positioning, means toponymic positioning equivalently. The former is based on the products of surveying, and the latter is popular for human use. Geographical name is the term of geographical reality, and it has possessed many attributes of regional geography, so people can recognize that geographical environment. Thus, geographical name is the key indicator in map reading, and the process of geographical name selection will influence the environmental recognition of the map-readers. This paper has dealt with six kinds of scale of topographic maps, in order to find the correlation and characteristics between map scale and geographical name rank, quantity, and density. The result will he helpful in map-use, numerical mapping and use of geographic information systems.