Notaars

Notaars is a term used to describe a category of annotation artifacts designed to capture short observations, reflections, or notes in both physical and digital formats. The concept appears in discussions across digital humanities, contemporary art, and fieldwork contexts, where quick, portable notation is valued over lengthy documentation. Because notaars are a broad category rather than a single product, their exact form and features vary by project and discipline.

Etymology and origins are informal. The word blends elements of “note” with a suffix that suggests craft or practice, signaling a focus on the act of noting rather than a fixed device. No standardized spelling or hierarchy of usage has emerged, and writers may refer to notaars in plural or as a generic class of tools.

Form and features. Notaars commonly involve brief textual entries and lightweight metadata. Physical versions may take the shape of cards, boards, or notepads designed for quick jotting, while digital versions include apps, plugins, or shared online archives. Typical data fields include a timestamp, author or contributor, tags or categories, and a link or reference to a longer source. Accessibility and portability are core design goals, enabling on‑the‑spot use in fieldwork, classrooms, studios, or exhibitions.

Applications. In practice, notaars support rapid documentation during field observations, collaborative projects, or participatory events. They enable incremental building of a collective archive, with entries that can be surfaced in installations, publications, or research workflows.

See also: annotation, field notebook, digital humanities.