A stacked area chart is a data visualization that displays two or more quantitative series as vertically stacked filled regions. Each series is plotted as an area whose height equals its value at each x-position; regions are layered so that the cumulative boundary shows the total across all series. It extends the area chart by encoding part-to-whole decomposition across a continuous dimension. Parameters: the series count must be ≥ 2; the stacking order changes the visual hierarchy but not the data. Persistence is through graphical rendering standards (SVG, HTML5 canvas) and publication formats. [formal: area chart cumulata | substrate: mind | horizon: a moment | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
stacked area chart
A stacked area chart is a data visualization that displays two or more quantitative series as vertically stacked filled regions. Each series is plotted as an area whose height equals its value at each x-position; regions are layered so tha…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-made data visualization construct that displays multiple series as area regions stacked vertically, where each region's height encodes the series value and the top boundary encodes the cumulative total, built to persist through graphical rendering conventions.
Names and aliases
- stacked area charten · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrwxsnil01pasoac8xs3wsgpINSTANCE_OF →
A stacked area chart is a specific kind of area chart that shows multiple data series stacked vertically — a competent speaker would classify it as a type of area chart per Law 9.
Relations to this entry
- cmrx4u3bg02avsoaccan9mkfi← INSTANCE_OF
Tested INSTANCE_OF: a streamgraph IS a specific kind of stacked area chart. Like a stacked area chart it represents multiple data series as filled areas stacked on top of each other, but instead of straight horizontal baselines it uses organic, flowing curves for each layer edge, giving it a characteristic fountain or river-like appearance.
Record identity
- Created
- Jul 23, 2026, 3:15 AM UTC
- Content hash
- f76d67802d67fa86fee9ec679c3af8fbc8db9d7ce52e2c5c529ac68154918007