MapToPoster supports displaying city and country names in any language, including non-Latin scripts like Japanese, Arabic, Korean, Thai, Chinese, and more. Fonts are automatically downloaded from Google Fonts and cached locally.
Overview The multilingual system provides:
Custom display names for city and country in any languageAutomatic font downloading from Google Fonts catalogLocal font caching to avoid repeated downloadsScript detection for proper typography (Latin vs. non-Latin)Fallback handling for missing fonts
Basic Usage Display Names Use --display-city and --display-country to override the displayed text:
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Tokyo" \ -C "Japan" \ -dc "東京" \ -dC "日本"
The -c and -C flags are still required for geocoding (finding the city location). The display flags only change what appears on the poster.
Custom Fonts Specify any font from Google Fonts using --font-family:
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Tokyo" \ -C "Japan" \ -dc "東京" \ -dC "日本" \ --font-family "Noto Sans JP"
The font is automatically:
Downloaded from Google Fonts API
Cached in fonts/cache/
Loaded for text rendering
Language Examples Japanese
Korean
Arabic
Chinese
Thai
Khmer
Greek
Hebrew
Russian
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Tokyo" -C "Japan" \ -dc "東京" -dC "日本" \ --font-family "Noto Sans JP" \ -t japanese_ink
Recommended Fonts:
Noto Sans JP (modern, clean)
Noto Serif JP (traditional, elegant)
M PLUS Rounded 1c (rounded, friendly)
Zen Kaku Gothic New (contemporary)
Other Cities: # Osaka (大阪) python create_map_poster.py -c "Osaka" -C "Japan" -dc "大阪" -dC "日本" --font-family "Noto Sans JP" # Kyoto (京都) python create_map_poster.py -c "Kyoto" -C "Japan" -dc "京都" -dC "日本" --font-family "Noto Serif JP"
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Seoul" -C "South Korea" \ -dc "서울" -dC "대한민국" \ --font-family "Noto Sans KR" \ -t midnight_blue
Recommended Fonts:
Noto Sans KR (clean, modern)
Noto Serif KR (traditional)
Black Han Sans (bold display)
Nanum Gothic (versatile)
Other Cities: # Busan (부산) python create_map_poster.py -c "Busan" -C "South Korea" -dc "부산" -dC "대한민국" --font-family "Noto Sans KR"
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Dubai" -C "UAE" \ -dc "دبي" -dC "الإمارات" \ --font-family "Cairo" \ -t terracotta
Recommended Fonts:
Cairo (modern, geometric)
Amiri (traditional, classical)
Tajawal (clean, versatile)
Almarai (contemporary)
Other Cities: # Riyadh (الرياض) python create_map_poster.py -c "Riyadh" -C "Saudi Arabia" -dc "الرياض" -dC "السعودية" --font-family "Cairo" # Marrakech (مراكش) python create_map_poster.py -c "Marrakech" -C "Morocco" -dc "مراكش" -dC "المغرب" --font-family "Amiri"
# Simplified Chinese python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Beijing" -C "China" \ -dc "北京" -dC "中国" \ --font-family "Noto Sans SC" # Traditional Chinese python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Taipei" -C "Taiwan" \ -dc "台北" -dC "台灣" \ --font-family "Noto Sans TC"
Recommended Fonts:
Noto Sans SC (Simplified, modern)
Noto Sans TC (Traditional, modern)
Noto Serif SC (Simplified, serif)
Noto Serif TC (Traditional, serif)
ZCOOL XiaoWei (stylized)
Other Cities: # Shanghai (上海) python create_map_poster.py -c "Shanghai" -C "China" -dc "上海" -dC "中国" --font-family "Noto Sans SC" # Hong Kong (香港) python create_map_poster.py -c "Hong Kong" -C "China" -dc "香港" -dC "中國" --font-family "Noto Sans TC"
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Bangkok" -C "Thailand" \ -dc "กรุงเทพมหานคร" -dC "ประเทศไทย" \ --font-family "Noto Sans Thai" \ -t sunset
Recommended Fonts:
Noto Sans Thai
Noto Serif Thai
Kanit (modern)
Prompt (clean)
Other Cities: # Chiang Mai (เชียงใหม่) python create_map_poster.py -c "Chiang Mai" -C "Thailand" -dc "เชียงใหม่" -dC "ประเทศไทย" --font-family "Noto Sans Thai"
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Phnom Penh" -C "Cambodia" \ -dc "ភ្នំពេញ" -dC "កម្ពុជា" \ --font-family "Noto Sans Khmer"
Recommended Fonts:
Noto Sans Khmer
Noto Serif Khmer
Battambang
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Athens" -C "Greece" \ -dc "Αθήνα" -dC "Ελλάδα" \ --font-family "Noto Sans"
Other Cities: # Thessaloniki (Θεσσαλονίκη) python create_map_poster.py -c "Thessaloniki" -C "Greece" -dc "Θεσσαλονίκη" -dC "Ελλάδα" --font-family "Noto Sans"
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Tel Aviv" -C "Israel" \ -dc "תל אביב" -dC "ישראל" \ --font-family "Noto Sans Hebrew"
Recommended Fonts:
Noto Sans Hebrew
Noto Serif Hebrew
Heebo (modern)
python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Moscow" -C "Russia" \ -dc "Москва" -dC "Россия" \ --font-family "Noto Sans"
Other Cities: # Saint Petersburg (Санкт-Петербург) python create_map_poster.py -c "Saint Petersburg" -C "Russia" -dc "Санкт-Петербург" -dC "Россия" --font-family "Noto Sans"
Typography Behavior Script Detection The tool automatically detects whether text is Latin or non-Latin:
Latin Scripts (English, French, Spanish, etc.):
Letter spacing applied for elegant aesthetics
Example: “P A R I S” (spaces between letters)
Non-Latin Scripts (Japanese, Arabic, Thai, etc.):
Natural spacing preserved
Example: “東京” (no artificial gaps)
This ensures proper typography for all languages without manual configuration.
Text Positioning All text is positioned using normalized coordinates:
y=0.14 City name (spaced for Latin, natural for non-Latin) y=0.125 Decorative line y=0.10 Country name y=0.07 Coordinates
Font Management Automatic Caching Fonts are cached in fonts/cache/ after first download:
fonts/ ├── Roboto-Light.ttf # Default fonts ├── Roboto-Regular.ttf ├── Roboto-Bold.ttf └── cache/ ├── Noto_Sans_JP-Regular.ttf ├── Noto_Sans_KR-Regular.ttf ├── Cairo-Regular.ttf └── ...
Manual Font Installation You can also manually place fonts in fonts/cache/:
Download .ttf file from Google Fonts
Place in fonts/cache/ directory
Use the font family name with --font-family
Finding Google Fonts Browse available fonts at fonts.google.com :
Filter by language/script
Copy the font family name
Use exact name with --font-family
Font names are case-sensitive and must match exactly as shown on Google Fonts.
Complete Examples Japanese with Custom Theme python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Tokyo" -C "Japan" \ -dc "東京" -dC "日本" \ --font-family "Noto Sans JP" \ -t japanese_ink \ -d 15000
Arabic with Multiple Flags python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Dubai" -C "UAE" \ -dc "دبي" -dC "الإمارات" \ --font-family "Cairo" \ -t midnight_blue \ -d 15000 \ -W 12 -H 16
Korean with All Themes python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Seoul" -C "South Korea" \ -dc "서울" -dC "대한민국" \ --font-family "Noto Sans KR" \ --all-themes
Chinese with Custom Coordinates python create_map_poster.py \ -c "Beijing" -C "China" \ -dc "北京" -dC "中国" \ --font-family "Noto Sans SC" \ -lat 39.9042 -long 116.4074 \ -t noir
Troubleshooting
Font not found on Google Fonts
Ensure the font name matches exactly as shown on fonts.google.com . Font names are case-sensitive. # Correct --font-family "Noto Sans JP" # Incorrect --font-family "noto sans jp" --font-family "Noto-Sans-JP"
Characters not displaying correctly
Make sure the font you selected supports the script you’re using. Check the font’s supported languages on Google Fonts. For example:
Use “Noto Sans JP” for Japanese (not “Roboto”)
Use “Cairo” for Arabic (not “Open Sans”)
Use “Noto Sans KR” for Korean
Text appears too spaced out
This is normal for Latin scripts. The tool applies letter spacing for aesthetics (“P A R I S”). For non-Latin scripts, spacing is not applied. If you see unwanted spacing in Japanese/Arabic/etc., the tool may be incorrectly detecting the script. File a bug report.
If font downloads fail:
Check your internet connection
Verify the font exists on Google Fonts
Try downloading manually and placing in fonts/cache/
Check the font file name matches the pattern: Font_Name-Regular.ttf
Using system fonts instead of Google Fonts
The tool is designed for Google Fonts integration. To use system fonts:
Copy the .ttf file to fonts/cache/
Use the font family name with --font-family
Note: The tool expects TrueType fonts (.ttf format). Font Recommendations by Script Script Language Examples Recommended Fonts Japanese 日本語 Noto Sans JP, Noto Serif JP, M PLUS Rounded 1c Korean 한국어 Noto Sans KR, Noto Serif KR, Black Han Sans Chinese (Simp.) 简体中文 Noto Sans SC, Noto Serif SC, ZCOOL XiaoWei Chinese (Trad.) 繁體中文 Noto Sans TC, Noto Serif TC Arabic العربية Cairo, Amiri, Tajawal, Almarai Thai ไทย Noto Sans Thai, Kanit, Prompt Hebrew עברית Noto Sans Hebrew, Heebo Greek Ελληνικά Noto Sans, Roboto Cyrillic Кириллица Noto Sans, Roboto, Montserrat Devanagari देवनागरी Noto Sans Devanagari, Poppins Bengali বাংলা Noto Sans Bengali, Hind Siliguri Tamil தமிழ் Noto Sans Tamil, Pavanam
Next Steps
Theme Gallery Explore all 17 built-in themes
Advanced Examples See complex multilingual examples with custom coordinates
