vapaakappaletrmin

Vapaakappaletrmin is a term used in some Finnish library science and copyright discussions to refer to the formal designation of the concept of a vapaakappale within bibliographic and legal contexts. The word combines Finnish components meaning “free” (vapaa) and “copy” or “part” (kappale) with the suffix for a term (termin), producing a label that may appear in scholarly writing, metadata schemas, or glossaries describing how free copies are treated in catalogs and legal deposits.

A vapaakappale, in practice, is a copy of a published work that is provided free of charge to designated libraries or archives under a legal deposit or similar obligation. The purpose of such deposits is to ensure long-term preservation, public access, and the cultural record of a country’s published output. In Finland and some other Nordic countries, publishers are required to send a certain number of copies to national or public libraries, although the exact requirements and participating institutions vary by jurisdiction.

In bibliographic records, the vapaakappaletrmin may be used to indicate that a particular item is a legally deposited free copy, which can have implications for cataloging, copyright status, and access rights. Libraries may use this designation to distinguish vapaakappale copies from commercial prints or from copies acquired through other channels.

Notes and scope: The term vapaakappaletrmin is not a universally standardized label and may appear primarily in academic discussions, national library practice guidelines, or metadata documentation. For precise rules, readers should consult the relevant national copyright and library-deposit statutes and the bibliographic standards used by their library system.

See also: free copy, legal deposit, national library, bibliographic metadata.