When studying at school, we used the margins to indicate what question we were answering - putting '1(a)' or '4(b)' in the space so the teacher knew just how much of our worksheet we'd worked through. But it turns out margins were not originally created for this purpose - instead to protect our writing in the 'lined section' from being destroyed.
Wondering why most notebooks have margins, one Reddit user asked: "In school, whenever writing in an exercise book we were always told to draw a margin on our page. But why? What is the purpose of a margin? Do kids still write in exercise books? Do they still draw margins?"
According to My Reading World, margins were originally made to prevent rats and mice from munching through your all important notes, as they'd often find their way into libraries to fill up on paper.
A statement reads: "In the past, where everything was dealt with papers, be it important records, confidential documents, or perhaps agreements, it was all stacked up in paper records and stored in a relatively protected place.
"But the real dangers of lost information wasn’t from humans but rats and mice. These tiny rodents love the taste of paper and are prone to eating away the documents, especially from the edges.
"Therefore, the manufacturers added margins on the edges of the notebooks so, despite any rodent intrusion, you can rest assured that your notes are safe at all times."
But this isn't the only reason why they've stuck around as margins also make a notebook easier to open and read, as they help the writer keep cleaner notes.
"Writing mistakes can quickly clutter up the page; having margins allows you to correct errors more neatly. Instead of crossing out a word and writing over or on top of it, you can cross out the name and write the correct one in the margins," the statement adds.
"Another way this can be used is for teachers. Teachers can easily give student notes, grades, and remarks on the margins without altering the students’ writing.
"Besides that, imagine a page without the top margin. Ever wondered how are you going to write the heading?
"Wouldn’t that look too cluttered if you mix in the title with the body text? In these cases, margins help keep your work organized by allocating a separate space for items relevant to the page but need to be written separately.
"It can also be used to write the key if you’re using any colour codes for the page."
Commenting on this revelation, one Reddit user said: "Rats? I thought it was for bullet points - but rats? You learn something new every day."
Another user added: "I use the margins to add bullets or numbers, and it just looks better for the eye if I'm taking notes to study later. If it's just rough work then I'm using every inch of the paper."
A third user said: "It's so helpful to have kids write within the margins so you can underline and make marginal notes right where they have errors.
"If you aren't writing/typing within the margins for grade/school reasons, I see no purpose for staying within margins. All my notebooks are dotted not lined for that reason."
Do you have a strange story to share? Email paige.freshwater@reachplc.com.
