Manual of Law French

Most English legal texts before 1600, and many from the seventeenth century are written in law French, a dialect which differs considerably both from current French and from old Norman French. Only two guides to law French were published , one in 1701 and the other in 1779: both were full of errors and omissions. This current manual is a revised and considerably enlarged version of the first edition which was published in 1779, the first law French manual to appear since the eighteenth century. The manual is the only current guide to the law French used in English law books between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, an essential reference tool for law libraries, students and practitioners of English legal history. This manual is a revised and considerably enlarged version of the 1979 edition. It is the only current guide to the law French used in English law books between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, and is an essential reference tool for law libraries, students and practitioners of English legal history.

Contents: Introduction to law French: History of lawyers' French; The study of law French; Some notes on grammar; Common abbreviations and contractions; Bibliography of aids to interpretation: Medieval word-lists; Modern glossaries of law French and Anglo-Norman; Dictionaries of old French and French etymological works; English dictionaries; Latin dictionaries; Translations and parallel texts; Guides to grammar and morphology.

J.H. Baker, LL.D., F.B.A., is a Professor of English Legal History at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of St. Catherine's College.