HIMME Place Types

Each place is categorized as one or more place types, drawn from the following list. Some of these types are more specific versions of other types; in general, the most specific relevant type is used. Place entries may be browsed by their different types on this browse page. Some of the definitions are shared, or others modified, from a similar list developed (with overlapping authorship) for The Syriac Gazetteer.

Type	Definition
building	A construction for which there is no more specific category. Examples of this type include palaces and named city gates.
campsite	A known stopping-place for travelers or nomads.
canal	An artificially dug water channel, whether for irrigation or shipping, whether with a current or still water.
cave	A subterranean space, from the largest cavern to the smallest hole in the ground.
cemetery	An area designated for the burial of the deceased.
church	A building for Christian religious services. It can be a parish church, a monastic church, a cathedral, or a small chapel used only occasionally, or even a chapel that is part of a larger church if it has a separate dedication or name.
cistern	A water storage space, whether covered or not, whether above-ground or in the ground.
diocese	An ecclesiastical province governed by a bishop, archbishop, metropolitan, catholicos, or patriarch.
ford	A place to cross a river without a bridge.
fortification	A military outpost such as a fort or a castle.
garden	A space designated for growing plants, whether for enjoyment or for consumption.
island	A land-mass surrounded on all sides by water.
madrasa	A building or space designated for instruction in the Islamic sciences.
marketplace	A space designated for selling things, whether inside a settlement or outside it.
mine	A place for extracting minerals or metals from the ground, whether using surface or subterranean mining techniques.
monastery	A whole monastic complex, including living quarters for the monks or nuns, the church(es), and potentially a refectory, library, school, or other part.
mosque	A building or designated space used for Muslim congregational prayers. It can be part of a larger building complex.
mountain	An elevated physical feature, from Mt. Ararat down to a prominent hill.
mountain-pass	A path or road, often but not necessarily narrow, that traverses mountains.
natural-feature	A natural feature for which there is no more specific category. Examples of this type include forests and hot springs.
oasis	A place in a desert or semi-arid land where freshwater makes plants grow.
open-water	A broad category for seas, lakes, oceans, and ponds.
ordo	An encampment of nomads, from a single family's ger to the movable cities of the Mongol khans. The location shifts over time, but a person's ordo is a continuous conceptual place even as it moves.
province	A political unit subject to a "state" but larger than a city. States often have multiple levels of administrative units, all of which can be indicated as a "province."
quarter	A neighborhood or subdivision of a city or town.
region	A term indicating a geographic extent larger than a city, without a corresponding politico-administrative apparatus. The size could range from a small valley to an entire continent.
river	A stream of water of whatever size, from the smallest creek to the Nile River.
road	Any path along which travel is conducted, from the narrowest foot-trail to a royal highway.
settlement	Any collection of civilian residences, from the smallest village to the largest metropolis.
spring	A source of water coming up from the ground.
state	A sovereign government such as an empire, kingdom, caliphate, or independent emirate.
synagogue	A building designated for use in Jewish worship.
temple	A building designated for use in pagan worship.
unknown	A place whose name is known, but what sort of place it represents is unknown (or not yet entered).
wadi	A river-bed which is dry at least part of the time.
water	Any water for which a more specific type (such as canal or spring or river) is not known.
well	A place where water is hauled up to the surface of the ground. There may or may not be a building of some kind above the hole from which the water is extracted. The hole itself may be natural or artificial.