popisovatpopisova

Popisovatpopisova is a neologistic term found in theoretical discussions of linguistics and information architecture to denote the act of describing descriptions. It describes a meta-descriptive process in which a description is analyzed, expanded, or rewritten to clarify the criteria, scope, and interpretive assumptions behind an earlier description. In practice, popisovatpopisova concerns the deliberate specification of how descriptive text was produced and how it should be interpreted.

Etymology and form: The word appears to be a compound built from the Czech verb popisovat (to describe) with a reduplicated element popisova, forming a self-referential construction that signals description of description. The term is primarily used in theoretical contexts rather than everyday language, and its exact origins remain a topic of debate among scholars.

Applications: Popisovatpopisova is discussed in analyses of metadata creation, accessibility text generation (such as alt text for images), and scholarly work on metadescriptions. It is used to examine the assumptions embedded in descriptions, the hierarchy of descriptors, and how additional layers of description influence interpretation or searchability.

Related terms: Metadescription, metatext, metadata, description recursion, and meta-annotation are closely related concepts. See also discussions of self-reference and reflexivity in language description.