The Oxford English Dictionary defines “documentation” as the accumulation, classification and dissemination of information; the material as collected.  Documenting traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions may include recording them, writing them down, taking pictures of them or filming them—anything that involves recording them in a way that preserves them and could make them available for others.  It is different from the traditional ways of preserving and passing on traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions within the community.

Documentation is especially important because it is often the way people beyond the traditional circle get access to traditional knowledge.  The “List and Brief Technical Explanation of Various Forms in which Traditional Knowledge may be Found” discusses documented traditional knowledge and non-documented traditional knowledge further.