Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §39.5.5.pr

Validity of Donations Out of Affection Regardless of Motive

Passage 6220 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

It explains that donations made out of affection, whether honorable (to well-deserving friends or relatives) or dishonorable (to prostitutes), are not legally prohibited.

[ULPIANUS libro trigensimo secundo ad Sabinum. ] §39.5.5.prAffectionis gratia neque honestae neque inhonestae donationes sunt prohibitae, honestae erga bene merentes amicos uel necessarios, inhonestae circa meretrices.
[ULPIANUS in the thirty-second book on Sabinus.]\n\nDonations made by reason of affection, whether honorable or dishonorable, are not prohibited: honorable ones toward well-deserving friends or relatives, dishonorable ones toward prostitutes.

Notes

  1. §39.5.5.prAffectionis gratia — The ablative gratia, functioning prepositionally, takes the genitive affectionis to indicate motive ("by reason of affection" or "out of favor"). Here, affectio refers to subjective fondness or friendly feeling.
  2. §39.5.5.prhonestae erga bene merentes amicos uel necessarios — The adjective honestae agrees with the subject donationes of the main clause, functioning either appositively or in an elliptical construction (supplying donationes sunt) to detail the types of donations. The preposition erga ("toward") governs the accusative. bene merentes is the accusative plural of the present participle bene merens ("well-deserving"), modifying amicos.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §39.5.5.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:39.5.5.pr

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