This dataset is a shape dataset of world maps, including maps of various scales, such as national borders, first-level administrative management (provinces, states, etc.), disputed areas, coastlines, and densely populated areas.

The "Countries of the World" in this dataset are generalized country-level boundaries that can be used at small to medium scales (for example, down to 1:2 meter scale). These boundaries have been generalized to support faster rendering at small scales. They include attributes for name and ISO code, as well as country affiliation information.