Palimpsest-MPL License (PMPL)

A file-level copyleft license with ethical use, emotional lineage, and quantum-safe provenance.

Built on Mozilla Public License 2.0.

Table of Contents

• 🚀 Current Version: v1.0 (January 2025)
• Quick Start
• What is PMPL?
  • Designed For
  • AI Training: Permitted with Attribution
• Why PMPL?
• Documentation
• Tooling
• Compatibility
• Repository Structure
• Legal Resources
• Governance
• Contributing
• Version History
• License of This Repository
• Links
• Questions?

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🚀 Current Version: v1.0 (January 2025)

The v1.0 license is STABLE and ready for production use.

📄 License Text: v1.0/LICENSE.txt
📚 Full Documentation: v1.0/README.adoc
⚡ Quick Start: Get started in 5 minutes
🔧 SPDX Identifier: PMPL-1.0-or-later

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Quick Start

Get PMPL v1.0 into your project right now:

# Download the license
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hyperpolymath/palimpsest-license/main/v1.0/LICENSE.txt
mv LICENSE.txt LICENSE

# Add SPDX headers to your source files
echo "// SPDX-License-Identifier: PMPL-1.0-or-later" >> your-file.js
echo "// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2025 Your Name" >> your-file.js

That’s it! Your project now uses PMPL v1.0.

For detailed instructions, see v1.0/docs/QUICK-START.adoc.

What is PMPL?

The Palimpsest-MPL License extends the proven Mozilla Public License 2.0 with three key additions:

Feature	Description
🌍 Ethical Use Guidelines (Exhibit A)	A structured framework for responsible use, including cultural sensitivity, community obligations, and narrative respect.
🔐 Quantum-Safe Provenance (Exhibit B)	Optional post-quantum cryptographic signatures for long-term attribution and lineage integrity.
💭 Emotional Lineage Protection	Recognition that creative works carry cultural, symbolic, and narrative meaning beyond mere code or text.

Designed For

• ✅ Open-source software

• ✅ Creative works and art

• ✅ Research artifacts and papers

• ✅ Datasets and training corpora

• ✅ Machine learning models

• ✅ Provenance-sensitive cultural materials

AI Training: Permitted with Attribution

PMPL explicitly permits use in AI training datasets, with clear attribution obligations for non-interpretive systems.

Why PMPL?

Like a palimpsest manuscript where each layer builds upon what came before, this license recognizes that creative works carry history, context, and meaning that transcend mere code or text.

Traditional licenses focus only on copyright and patents. PMPL adds:

• Cultural context - Honor the narrative and symbolic weight of works

• Attribution chains - Cryptographic provenance for long-term lineage

• Ethical framework - Structured guidance beyond "don’t be evil"

• Future-proof crypto - Post-quantum signatures protect attribution for decades

Documentation

Document	Description
v1.0 Overview	Complete guide to the current version
Quick Start Guide	Get up and running in 5 minutes
FAQ	Common questions answered
Integration Guide	CI/CD, package managers, SPDX tooling
Legal Resources	Jurisdictional frameworks, pro bono contacts
Governance	Palimpsest Stewardship Council structure
Changelog	Version history and evolution

Tooling

PMPL includes command-line tools for provenance and compliance:

Tool	Purpose
pmpl-sign	Create quantum-safe signatures for your files
pmpl-verify	Verify provenance metadata and signature chains
pmpl-audit	Audit repositories for PMPL compliance and SPDX correctness

Build instructions: tools/README.adoc

Parser and advanced tools: The Palimpsest Plasma project provides a ReScript-based license parser. See: https://github.com/hyperpolymath/palimpsest-plasma

Compatibility

PMPL v1.0 is compatible with:

• ✅ MIT License

• ✅ BSD-2-Clause / BSD-3-Clause

• ✅ Apache-2.0

• ✅ MPL-2.0

• ✅ LGPL-2.1 or later

• ✅ GPL-2.0 or later (via secondary license mechanism)

See v1.0/docs/COMPATIBILITY.adoc for detailed compatibility matrix.

Repository Structure

palimpsest-license/
├── v1.0/                    ← CURRENT VERSION (START HERE!)
│   ├── LICENSE.txt          ← The actual license text
│   ├── README.adoc          ← v1.0 documentation hub
│   ├── docs/                ← Guides, FAQ, integration
│   ├── exhibits/            ← Exhibit A & B full text
│   ├── examples/            ← Sample implementations
│   └── tools/               ← Links to tooling
├── legal/                   ← Legal resources
│   ├── PALIMPSEST-MPL-1.0.txt
│   ├── exhibits/
│   ├── frameworks/          ← Jurisdictional analysis
│   └── translations/
├── tools/                   ← Rust tooling (sign, verify, audit)
├── docs/                    ← Cross-version documentation
├── spec/                    ← Technical specifications
├── research/                ← Research papers and notes
├── ARCHIVE/                 ← Legacy v0.x materials (historical only)
│   ├── v0.3/
│   └── v0.4/
└── ...

Legal Resources

PMPL is governed by Dutch law (primary jurisdiction), with supporting analysis for:

• 🇳🇱 Netherlands

• 🇬🇧 United Kingdom (England & Wales, Scotland)

• 🇪🇺 European Union

• 🇺🇸 United States

The legal/ directory includes:

• Pro bono organization contacts

• Jurisdictional frameworks

• Legal strategy documents

• Translation resources

• Honest broker candidates

See legal/README.adoc for full details.

Governance

PMPL is maintained by the Palimpsest Stewardship Council, consisting of:

• 3 Creator Representatives

• 2 Legal Experts

• 1 Technologist

• 1 Cultural Heritage Advocate

The Council oversees license evolution, interpretive guidance, dispute mediation, and the versioning process.

See GOVERNANCE.adoc and VERSIONING.adoc for details.

Contributing

We welcome contributions to:

• 📝 Documentation improvements

• 🔧 Tooling enhancements

• 🔬 Research and analysis

• 🌍 Translations

Before contributing:

1. Read CONTRIBUTING.adoc

2. Open an issue for proposals

3. Join GitHub Discussions

Note: Changes to the license text follow a formal review process through the Stewardship Council.

Version History

Version	Status	Notes
v1.0	✅ STABLE	Current production version (January 2025). Simplified structure, fully reviewed, SPDX compliant.
v0.4	🗄️ Archived	Final draft version. See ARCHIVE/v0.4/
v0.3	🗄️ Archived	Early draft. See ARCHIVE/v0.3/

⚠️ Legacy Materials: All v0.x materials in ARCHIVE/, GUIDES_v0.4/, METADATA_v0.4/, and TOOLKIT_v0.4/ are retained for historical reference only. Do not use these for new projects.

Use v1.0 for all new work.

License of This Repository

This repository is licensed under:

SPDX-License-Identifier: PMPL-1.0-or-later
SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2025 Palimpsest Stewardship Council

The full license text is in v1.0/LICENSE.txt.

Links

• 📂 Canonical Repository: https://github.com/hyperpolymath/palimpsest-license

• 🐛 Issues: https://github.com/hyperpolymath/palimpsest-license/issues

• 💬 Discussions: https://github.com/hyperpolymath/palimpsest-license/discussions

• 🔧 Parser & Advanced Tools: https://github.com/hyperpolymath/palimpsest-plasma

• 📧 Legal Contact: Via Stewardship Council (see GOVERNANCE.adoc)

Questions?

• For usage questions: Check the FAQ or start a discussion

• For legal questions: Contact the Palimpsest Stewardship Council

• For bugs or issues: Open an issue

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Ready to get started? → Quick Start Guide