Attribution

What it does

Map data comes with conditions, and nearly all of them say the same thing: show where the data came from. OpenStreetMap requires attribution, and so do most national services. The attribution control shows those credits on the map.

It shows attribution for the sources that are on the map. Turn a layer off and its credit disappears. Add a layer and its credit appears. The text comes from the source definitions.

Credits can be long, so the line scrolls sideways instead of covering the map.

Treat attribution as required furniture rather than as a feature. A map without credits is usually a licence breach.

Using it

Read it and follow the links. The list changes as you add and remove layers.

In your own map

Add attribution with a position, conventionally bottom-right.

The text itself belongs to each source, as its attribution property. Put the credit there, and every panel that needs the credit reads from there.

Extending it

Attributions come from the live source list. A layer added later, such as a drawing, analysis result, or dropped file, can show its credit too.