GIS stands for which term?

• A. Geographic Information System
• B. Global Information System
• C. Geographic Information Service
• D. Geospatial Information System

Answer: (A)

At its heart, GIS is about handling location-based information within a coordinated system. It combines geographic data with the hardware, software, and procedures needed to capture, store, analyze, and present that information in maps and spatial analyses. The standard expansion is Geographic Information System because “Geographic” specifies the spatial aspect, “Information” refers to the data about places, and “System” denotes an integrated set of components that work together.

The other phrases don’t fit as precisely: a Global Information System would imply a worldwide scope rather than the geographic-data framework GIS represents; a Geographic Information Service suggests a service rather than the complete system; a Geospatial Information System uses a common synonym for location-based data, but the conventional term taught and used in practice is Geographic Information System.