Afbeelding

Afbeelding is a Dutch noun meaning an image or picture. It denotes a two-dimensional representation of a subject, produced by drawing, painting, photography, or digital rendering. In general usage, afbeelding covers photographs, drawings, diagrams, and illustrations that are used to convey information, depict appearances, or support argumentation.

The word is built from af- (away, off) and beeld (image or likeness), and is closely linked to the verb afbeelden, to depict. Dutch distinguishes several related terms: beeld for a general image or statue, foto for a photograph, illustratie for an illustration, and plaatje for a casual or colloquial picture. The precise choice depends on context and nuance.

Contexts and usage: In print and online media, afbeeldingen accompany text as illustrations or diagrams. In cartography and technical drawings, an afbeelding can be a figure or schematic. In computing and digital publishing, afbeelding is the generic term for any image file, used in file names, captions, and metadata; it is also employed in accessibility descriptions, where alt text refers to the afbeelding.

Digital formats and management: Common image formats referred to as afbeeldingen include JPEG, PNG, GIF, and SVG, among others. An afbeelding may carry metadata about resolution, color space, licensing, and authorship. The term remains central in Dutch discussions of visual content, copyright, and media literacy, reflecting the broad role of images in communication and representation.