DESCRIPTIVE TOPOGRAPHIC TERMS OF SPANISH 
AMERICA* 
By Robert T. Hill, 
United States Geological Survey 
“ Did it ever occur to the reader how poverty-stricken the (I will not 
say English exactly, but) Anglo-American language is in sharp, crisp, 
definite topograpliic terms ? English writers seem to have gathered up 
a moderate number of them, but they got most of them from Scotland 
within the past thirtj' or forty years. They are not a part of our legiti- 
mate inheritance from the mother country. In truth, we have in this 
country some three or four words which are available for duty in express- 
ing several scores of topographic characteristics. Anything that is hol- 
low we call a valley and anything that stands up above the surrounding 
land we call a hill or mountain ; but the Spanish — or Mexican, if you 
prefer — is rich in topographic terms which are delightfully expressive 
and definite. There is scarcely a feature of the land which repeats itself 
with similar characteristics that has not a pat name ; and these terms 
are euphonious as well as precise. They designate things objective as 
happily and concisely as the Saxon designates things subjective ; there- 
fore we use them.” — Major C. E. Dutton, “ Mount Taylor and the Zuili 
Plateau,” pp. 126-127, Sixth Annual Report, U. S. Geological Survey, 
1884-’85. 
An apj)ropriate generic name should be provided for every 
possible form of the earth’s surface, so that when referred to it 
may be as readily recognized as are the parts of a building in 
an architectural description. The nomenclature of geographic 
processes has far outstripped that of topographic forms, so that 
pages of literature are burdened with sentences descriptive of 
ordinary unnamed features of the landscape that should be 
expressed by simple designations. The English language is 
exceedingly sterile in topographic adjectives and substantives, 
and such words as we possess are ambiguously applied to many 
different specific forms. 
All topograi)hic forms may be reduced to four distinct generic 
categorie.s — eminences (protuberances), plains, valleys, and de- 
clivities. Each of these has variations ])roductive of a large 
number of specific forms, ))assing one into another. 
• Pre|mrc<l for n report to ttio Director of ftie U. .S. OooloKiciil Survey on tlio geonru- 
phy of tlie Texus - New Mexieun region of tlie Uniteil Stiitos. 
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