Kéziratot

Kéziratot is a Hungarian word that translates to "manuscript" in English. It refers to a handwritten document, particularly one that is of historical, literary, or scholarly significance. Before the advent of printing technology, all books and documents were handwritten manuscripts. These manuscripts were painstakingly created by scribes, often in monasteries or scriptoria, and could take years to complete.

The study of kéziratot is a field in itself, involving paleography (the study of ancient writing), codicology (the study of books as physical objects), and textual criticism. These disciplines help scholars to date manuscripts, understand their provenance, and reconstruct the original text of works that may have been copied and altered over time. Many important literary and historical works survive only in manuscript form, offering invaluable insights into the past.

In modern usage, the term kéziratot can also refer to an author's original handwritten or typed draft of a book, article, or other written work, prior to its publication. Libraries and archives often house collections of such manuscripts, which can be of interest to researchers and literary historians. The preservation and accessibility of these kéziratot are crucial for maintaining cultural heritage and facilitating scholarly research.