The Geography Markup Language (GML) is an XML encoding in compliance with ISO 19118 for the transport
and storage of geographic information modelled in accordance with the conceptual modelling framework used
in the ISO 19100 series of International Standards and including both the spatial and non-spatial properties of
geographic features.
This International Standard defines the XML Schema syntax, mechanisms and conventions that:
- provide an open, vendor-neutral framework for the description of geospatial application schemas for the
transport and storage of geographic information in XML;
- allow profiles that support proper subsets of GML framework descriptive capabilities;
- support the description of geospatial application schemas for specialized domains and information
communities;
- enable the creation and maintenance of linked geographic application schemas and datasets;
- support the storage and transport of application schemas and datasets;
- increase the ability of organizations to share geographic application schemas and the information they
describe.
Implementers may decide to store geographic application schemas and information in GML, or they may
decide to convert from some other storage format on demand and use GML only for schema and data
transport.