compurgator
Noun
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.003
Noun
compurgator (plural compurgators)
- Someone who vouches for another person's innocence, trustworthiness etc.
- (now historical, legal) A character witness in canon law who swore an oath that the accused was innocent.
- 1971, Keith Thomas (historian), Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society 2012, p. 244:
- If a wise woman fell under suspicion from the authorities her neighbours might rally to her defence, providing compurgators in court, or drawing up certificates testifying to her innocence.
- 1971, Keith Thomas (historian), Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society 2012, p. 244:
- (historical, legal) An ‘oath-helper’ in Anglo-Saxon or Germanic law who testified to the character of an accused person.
- (now historical, legal) A character witness in canon law who swore an oath that the accused was innocent.
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.003