Monday March 9th 2026

Mapathon: Maps as a source for Surinamese history

Image: MIKO Inventaris van kaarten en tekeningen behorende tot het archief van het Ministerie van Koloniën en rechtsopvolgers, (1702) 1814-1963.

Are you interested in the history of Suriname, and do you enjoy working with old maps? On March 9, 2026, the Suriname Time Machine and partners are organising a Mapathon in Amsterdam.

Mapathon in Amsterdam

The university libraries of Leiden and Amsterdam have extensive collections of historical Surinamese maps. These contain valuable information, for example, about plantations, rivers, streets, and buildings. During the Mapathon, we aim to record this information digitally. This will create a foundation that, in the near future, will allow us to link all kinds of other information, such as images or digitised documents about the people who lived there.

Activities

There are various activities suitable for both beginners and experienced tech geeks. For example, you can help with georeferencing: overlaying old maps of Suriname on modern maps. We are also testing a new tool that automatically extracts text from old maps, making them more searchable. Furthermore, we will improve the historical-geographical information about Suriname on Wikidata, as part of the Wiki goes Caribbean initiative.

In short, there’s plenty to do, and you choose what you want to contribute. We’ll provide coffee, tea, and drinks for the closing reception. All you need to bring is your laptop.

Register

For catering purposes, please register here by February 15th.

Participating organisations

Suriname Tijdmachine, Huygens Instituut / Stichting Pica

Allard Pierson / Universiteitsbibliotheek Amsterdam

Universiteitsbibliotheek Leiden

Allmaps / TU Delft

Wikimedia Nederland

Historische Database van Suriname en de Cariben

CREATE/Humanities Labs, Universiteit van Amsterdam