Kirjutisi

Kirjutisi is an Estonian noun referring to a short written item, such as an inscription, annotation, or marginal note. In archival and palaeographic contexts, the term is used to describe brief texts attached to a document or manuscript, often aimed at explaining, clarifying, or recording information about the primary text.

Etymology and form: The word is derived from the verb kirjutama (to write) and uses a nominal ending that, in historical registers, signals a thing related to the action of writing. The sense is typically interpretive or descriptive rather than a full independent text.

Usage: In contemporary Estonian, the term is uncommon in everyday speech; speakers usually use märkus (note) or märkmed (notes) to refer to written annotations. Kirjutisi appears mainly in historical, academic, or palaeographic literature, where it helps distinguish brief or marginal texts from the main body of writing.

Context and scope: The sense of kirjutisi can include inscriptions on artifacts, marginalia in manuscripts, or short appended notes on documents. It is not the standard word for a complete document or literary work; for those meanings, other terms such as kirjutis (a piece of writing) or kirjandus (literature) are used. In scholarly work, kirjutisi is often discussed within the study of manuscript culture and archival practices.

See also: handwriting, marginalia, palaeography, archival studies, estonian manuscript tradition.