kartoitti

Kartoitti is the past tense form of the Finnish verb kartoittaa, which means to map, chart, survey, or inventory. It describes the act of systematically collecting information about a place, object, or phenomenon and representing it in a map, dataset, or report. In professional contexts the verb denotes a methodical data-gathering process rather than casual observation.

The word is derived from kartta, the Finnish word for map, through a productive derivational pattern that forms verbs expressing the act of making a map or survey. Related nouns include kartoitus (a survey or mapping exercise) and kartoittava or kartoitettava (to be surveyed).

Kartoittaminen is common in geography, urban planning, environmental science, archaeology, and market research. It often appears in contexts such as land use mapping, resource inventories, or historical site documentation. Example: Hän kartoitti kaupungin rakennukset. (He mapped the city's buildings.) Arkeologiset tutkimukset kartoittivat alueen muinaisjäännöksiä. (Archaeological surveys mapped the area’s ancient remains.) The past tense form kartoitti can be used similarly to describe completed mapping or surveying actions.

See also: kartoittaa, kartoitus, kartta, kartografia.