The article focuses on the notion oopaev ('twenty-four hours, day and night') and the subdivisions of the term in the Estonian language. Attempt is made to ascertain how Estonians render meaning to oopaev and what are the content-wide considerations for periodising the oopaev and paev ('day'), and whether the reasons for periodisation in different languages are similar or not. In the Estonian language, the period of daylight is understood as work-time. Proceeding from this standpoint, hommik ('morning') as a productive section of the day is segmented in a detailed manner and time-wise lasts until lunch. The evening (ohtu), on the contrary, is understood, besides time-wise notion, as the finishing of work and transfer to the rest period from any time since lunch (kell kaks jaadi juba ohtule ('they called it a day already at two o'clock'); ohtule saadi alles loojangu eel ('they finished work only before sunset').
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