recollectie

Recollectie is a Dutch noun meaning the act of recalling past experiences or information, or the content of what is remembered. In English, the cognate term is recollection. The word derives from Latin recollectio, through Old French récollection, and has long been used in both everyday language and scholarly discourse to distinguish the act of retrieval from the mere sense of familiarity.

In philosophy, recollection has a prominent role. In Plato's theory of anamnesis, learning is described as recollection of knowledge already present in the soul. In contemporary philosophy of memory, recollection is discussed as a conscious retrieval of specific details and contextual information, often with subjective certainty, and is analyzed in relation to justification and epistemic warrant.

In psychology, recollection refers to the qualitative experience of retrieving episodic details—such as who, what, when, and where—often accompanied by reliving. It is contrasted with familiarity, where something is recognized without recalling specifics. Experimental paradigms, like remember/know judgments and source-monitoring tasks, are used to study the properties and accuracy of recollection.

Usage: In everyday Dutch, the term appears primarily in formal or literary contexts; more common terms for memory are herinnering. Recollectie can also appear in historical or psychological discussions.