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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §1.7.23.pr

Scope of Agnation through Adoption and Marriage Prohibitions

Passage 125 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Paulus explains that since adoption creates the right of agnation rather than blood, no relation is established with the adoptive father's wife or mother, whereas a legal sibling relationship is established with the daughter in the same family, preventing their marriage.

[PAULUS libro trigensimo quinto ad edictum. ] §1.7.23.prQui in adoptionem datur, his quibus adgnascitur et cognatus fit, quibus uero non adgnascitur nec cognatus fit: adoptio enim non ius sanguinis, sed ius adgnationis adfert.
[PAUL, on the Edict, book 35.] He who is given in adoption becomes a cognate to those to whom he becomes an agnate, but to those to whom he does not become an agnate, he does not become a cognate either; for adoption does not bring the right of blood, but the right of agnation.
et ideo si filium adoptauero, uxor mea illi matris loco non est, neque enim adgnascitur ei, propter quod nec cognata eius fit: item nec mater mea auiae loco illi est, quoniam his, qui extra familiam meam sunt, non adgnascitur: sed filiae meae is quem adoptaui frater fit, quoniam in familia mea est filia: nuptiis tamen etiam eorum prohibitis.
And therefore, if I adopt a son, my wife is not in the position of a mother to him, for she does not become an agnate to him, and because of this she does not become his cognate either. Likewise, my mother is not in the position of a grandmother to him, since he does not become an agnate to those who are outside my family. But he whom I have adopted becomes a brother to my daughter, since my daughter is in my family; their marriage, however, being also forbidden.

Notes

  1. §1.7.23.prhis quibus adgnascitur et cognatus fit — The demonstrative pronoun `his` (dative) serves as the antecedent of the relative pronoun `quibus` and syntactically depends on both the verb `adgnascitur` (which governs the dative) and the adjective `cognatus` (which takes the dative). In the second half (`quibus uero...`), a corresponding `[eis]` is understood as omitted.
  2. §1.7.23.prnuptiis tamen etiam eorum prohibitis — An ablative absolute construction (noun `nuptiis` + perfect participle `prohibitis`) accompanied by the conjunction `tamen` (however), expressing a restriction that, because they become legal siblings, their marriage is forbidden.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §1.7.23.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:1.7.23.pr

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