galactographer

English

Etymology

From galactography (“science of charting and mapping galaxies”) +‎ -er. Coined by American science fiction author Edmond Hamilton in his 1965 novelette The Shores of Infinity.

Noun

galactographer (plural galactographers)

1. (science fiction) A specialist in galactography.
   • 1965 April, Edmond Hamilton, “The Shores of Infinity”, in Amazing Stories, volume 39, number 4, page 24:

     Early galactographers had defined it as that part of the galaxy which lay between the eastern and southern kingdoms, and the edge of the island-universe.

   • 1978, Robert Edward Vardeman, The Sandcats of Rhyl, →ISBN:

     It seems like these 'cats might be left over from wetter days. I found a brief study of Rhyl done by a couple galactographers, and they reported this was once a cooler planet.

   • 1982, Isaac Asimov, Foundation's Edge, →ISBN, page 99:

     Some galactographers have estimated that there may be up to ten thousand inhabited planets that aren't listed at all.

Related terms

• galactographic

References

• Jeff Prucher, editor (2007), “galactographer”, in Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction, Oxford, Oxfordshire, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 75.
• Jesse Sheidlower, editor (2001–2024), “galactographer n.”, in Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction.