Recollectio

Recollectio is a Latin noun meaning recollection, the act of recalling memories or ideas. In Latin literature it is used to describe the mind’s retrieval of previously stored information and is often discussed together with memoria (memory) and perceptio (perception). The word derives from re- (“again”) and collectio (“gathering” or “collection”).

In philosophical and theological contexts, recollectio denotes the operation by which the intellect summons past knowledge. Medieval and Renaissance authors treat recollectio as an internal process through which the mind ascends from particular impressions to universal concepts, and as a distinct stage within inquiries into cognition, memory, and signification. It is sometimes described as a preparatory or intermediate act in the chain of epistemic processes, linking sense impression to understanding.

In modern usage, recollectio appears mainly in translations of Latin philosophical or scholastic texts or in discussions of ancient theories of memory. It is not a common term in everyday English, where recollection or memory are preferred. When used, recollectio often conveys a classical, antiquarian, or technical nuance, signaling the term’s historical and linguistic context rather than a contemporary technical concept.

See also: memory, recollection, reminiscence, mnemonic, Latin philosophy.