hüvitatav

Hävitatav is an Estonian adjective meaning capable of being destroyed or erased; in practice it is used to describe objects, information, or materials that may be disposed of under policy or regulation when they are no longer required.

Etymology: It is derived from the verb hävitama "to destroy" with the -atav suffix that forms adjectives indicating possibility or susceptibility.

Usage: The term appears in archives, records management, data protection, and waste handling. In archival practice, items marked hävitatav are scheduled for destruction after the legally defined retention period. In information security and data protection, hävitatav teave or hävitatav andmed refers to data that can be permanently deleted when it is no longer needed or when retention obligations end. In physical materials, it can describe items intended for disposal, such as outdated paper records or obsolete hardware; destruction may involve shredding, degaussing, or other approved methods.

Grammatical notes: Hävitatav is used attributively with a noun (hävitatav materjal, hävitatav teave) and inflects per Estonian grammar.

See also: Hävitamine (destruction) and säilitamine (retention).