õiglaste

Õiglaste is an Estonian grammatical form that functions as the genitive plural of the phrase referring to people described as just or fair. In ordinary usage it appears in contexts where the group of fair or righteous individuals is being discussed in a possessive or relational sense, for example in phrases such as “õiglaste seas” (among the just) or “õiglaste arv” (the number of the just).

The base word is õiglane, meaning a fair or just person, and its related noun õiglus means justice or fairness. The form õiglaste represents the plural genitive, used to attribute something to or about the group of just people. This construction is common in Estonian for expressing relationships such as possession, association, or source in reference to a described group.

In practice, õiglaste does not denote a specific organization, movement, or widely recognized entity. Rather, it is a grammatical form that may appear in legal, religious, or literary texts where speakers refer to a group characterized by fairness or justice. The term is therefore primarily of interest from a linguistic and grammatical perspective, rather than as a standalone concept.

See also: Õiglus, Õiglane, Estonian grammar, Genitive case.