Father of Cartography

Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy, c. 85–165 AD) is called the "father of cartography" for his revolutionary scientific approach to map-making, which laid the foundation for modern geography. His most important contributions are recorded in his eight-volume work Geographia:

• Introduction of the coordinate system: Ptolemy was the first to use a systematic grid of latitude and longitude to precisely determine locations on Earth. He assigned coordinates to approximately 8,000 (according to some sources, up to 10,000) places in the then-known world.
• Map projections: He developed mathematical methods (projections) to represent the spherical Earth on a flat surface, taking into account the distortions this process causes.
• Standardization: He introduced conventions that are still used today, such as orienting the map to north at the top. 
• Enormous influence: Although his work was largely lost in Europe during the Middle Ages, its rediscovery during the Renaissance led to a boom in cartography and inspired great explorers like Christopher Columbus.

Although his maps were inaccurate by modern standards—for example, he overestimated the size of known landmasses and underestimated the Earth's circumference — his methodical approach transformed cartography into a scientific discipline rather than simply an artistic representation.