4 ms·

Curious is the representation of a lot of religions but not a cross present? https://imgur.com/a/kJzG4 https://imgur.com/a/kJzG4

JungleGymSam 9y ago
Yep. Very telling.
scrumper 9y ago
I saw that. Quite odd. Do they not have the data to be able to say definitively, "This is a Christian house of worship"? Seems unlikely?
- kraig911 9y ago
  To me more telling was the swastika is there but not a cross.
kadal 9y ago
Ugh, just hope it doesn't spark another "war against christianity" thing
- kraig911 9y ago
  It will probably will. It's too bad too because this is one of those things that's easy to rectify.
  - porfirium 9y ago
    So if they don't rectify it, it's because there's intent.
    - kraig911 9y ago
      Not sure. Just saying it's easy to add a cross and be truly and not leave the question of bias out there. This is becoming a mountain out of a molehill thing though. I just don't want Google villified by you know whos.
      - porfirium 9y ago
        I'm a Christian and I feel this is a cheap shot. I believe this to be malicious, especially coming from Google. Could even be some kind of inside joke.
        kraig911 9y ago
        I'm a Christian and I just feel this came from a team that didn't have much in the way of a Christian on their team. That said we as Christians aren't faring well at being represented at all at most tech companies. Even moreso I bet at google but that's just me assuming. I fear the worst but assume the best of google about this. It's really a small detail.
tacomonstrous 9y ago
This can be interpreted in a different way: the default house of worship in the US is Christian, and so only the counterexamples need their own symbols.
muro 9y ago
at some point, the maps UX team explained how it's not right to show a church with a cross on top for all places of worship. Thus it was removed. IIRC some time later, icons for more religions were added, but the default stayed as it is. Assuming https://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/06/the_odd_body_religion/is https://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/06/the_odd_body_religi... is still valid, Christianity has as many "members" as two next biggest religions combined, so it's funny/sad it doesn't get the symbol.
- kraig911 9y ago
  It just seems so calculated too. I mean use a fish or something if you're afraid of a connotation.
ythn 9y ago
I'm surprised more ignorant folks aren't outraged at Buddhist temples being a "hate symbol"
- uuoc 9y ago
  That symbol's history far predates its quite recent re-definition as a hate symbol in the western world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika (a wee bit of emphasis added below): > The swastika is an ancient religious icon used in the Indian subcontinent, East Asia and Southeast Asia, where it has been and remains a sacred symbol of spiritual principles in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. In the Western world, it was historically a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck,[5] but in the 1930s, it became the main feature of Nazi symbolism as an emblem of Aryan race identity, and as a result, it has become stigmatized in the West by association with ideas of racism, hatred, and mass murder. > Some of the earliest archaeological evidence of the swastika in the Indian subcontinent can be dated to 3,000 BCE. 3000 BCE by far predates the last ~85-90 years of its redefinition.
  - Coincoin 9y ago
    Yes. That's exactly your comment parent's point.
- kraig911 9y ago
  I wonder if it's going to show up in google maps in Germany.
throwaway_hn 9y ago
Not to mention that the symbol used looks a lot like a mosque. Domed roof with "towers" on either side.
cooper12 9y ago
The reason you're seeing such a variation is because the icons are based on per-country map conventions. They have different icons for use in different areas, for example there are some specifically for Japan. Christianity is covered in the generic "Church or temple" icon, but people in other countries with other major religions wouldn't recognize that iconography. The point is probably to be open to other religions in the West, while also considering the breadth in other countries.
- baud147258 9y ago
  So in, for example, Muslim-majority countries, the few Christian churches will appear as generic place of worship.

JungleGymSam 9y ago

Yep. Very telling.

scrumper 9y ago

I saw that. Quite odd. Do they not have the data to be able to say definitively, "This is a Christian house of worship"? Seems unlikely?

kraig911 9y ago
To me more telling was the swastika is there but not a cross.

kadal 9y ago

Ugh, just hope it doesn't spark another "war against christianity" thing

kraig911 9y ago
It will probably will. It's too bad too because this is one of those things that's easy to rectify.
- porfirium 9y ago
  So if they don't rectify it, it's because there's intent.
  - kraig911 9y ago
    Not sure. Just saying it's easy to add a cross and be truly and not leave the question of bias out there. This is becoming a mountain out of a molehill thing though. I just don't want Google villified by you know whos.
    - porfirium 9y ago
      I'm a Christian and I feel this is a cheap shot. I believe this to be malicious, especially coming from Google. Could even be some kind of inside joke.
      - kraig911 9y ago
        I'm a Christian and I just feel this came from a team that didn't have much in the way of a Christian on their team. That said we as Christians aren't faring well at being represented at all at most tech companies. Even moreso I bet at google but that's just me assuming. I fear the worst but assume the best of google about this. It's really a small detail.

tacomonstrous 9y ago

This can be interpreted in a different way: the default house of worship in the US is Christian, and so only the counterexamples need their own symbols.

muro 9y ago

at some point, the maps UX team explained how it's not right to show a church with a cross on top for all places of worship. Thus it was removed. IIRC some time later, icons for more religions were added, but the default stayed as it is. Assuming https://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/06/the_odd_body_religion/is https://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/06/the_odd_body_religi... is still valid, Christianity has as many "members" as two next biggest religions combined, so it's funny/sad it doesn't get the symbol.

kraig911 9y ago
It just seems so calculated too. I mean use a fish or something if you're afraid of a connotation.

ythn 9y ago

I'm surprised more ignorant folks aren't outraged at Buddhist temples being a "hate symbol"

uuoc 9y ago
That symbol's history far predates its quite recent re-definition as a hate symbol in the western world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika (a wee bit of emphasis added below): > The swastika is an ancient religious icon used in the Indian subcontinent, East Asia and Southeast Asia, where it has been and remains a sacred symbol of spiritual principles in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. In the Western world, it was historically a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck,[5] but in the 1930s, it became the main feature of Nazi symbolism as an emblem of Aryan race identity, and as a result, it has become stigmatized in the West by association with ideas of racism, hatred, and mass murder. > Some of the earliest archaeological evidence of the swastika in the Indian subcontinent can be dated to 3,000 BCE. 3000 BCE by far predates the last ~85-90 years of its redefinition.
- Coincoin 9y ago
  Yes. That's exactly your comment parent's point.
kraig911 9y ago
I wonder if it's going to show up in google maps in Germany.

throwaway_hn 9y ago

Not to mention that the symbol used looks a lot like a mosque. Domed roof with "towers" on either side.

cooper12 9y ago

The reason you're seeing such a variation is because the icons are based on per-country map conventions. They have different icons for use in different areas, for example there are some specifically for Japan. Christianity is covered in the generic "Church or temple" icon, but people in other countries with other major religions wouldn't recognize that iconography. The point is probably to be open to other religions in the West, while also considering the breadth in other countries.

baud147258 9y ago
So in, for example, Muslim-majority countries, the few Christian churches will appear as generic place of worship.