Apostilles

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A formal certification or official endorsement attached to a document for authenticity in international law
2. a type of verification that allows a document to be recognized across borders
3. a specialized form of authentication used primarily in countries that are signatories to the Hague Convention

Etymology: "Apostilles" is the plural of "apostille," a French word that originally meant a marginal note added to a text. The French word traces back to the Latin phrase "post illa verba," meaning "after those words," which is exactly what such a note did: it was written after the original wording, in the margin, to clarify or add to it. Over time the note's role grew more formal, and the sense shifted from a casual gloss to an official addition that vouches for a document. The phrase itself is built from three ordinary Latin words: "post" (after), "illa" (those), and "verba" (words). Nothing in the phrase was specialized; it simply described a comment placed after a passage. The legal sense that concerns authentication came later, as the marginal annotation became a standard way to attest that a document was genuine.