Ius facts for kids

This ancient bronze tablet shows a law about Emperor Vespasian's powers. It says he had the full right and authority to do whatever he thought was best for the state. This idea of an emperor having absolute power was later used by kings in Europe.

In ancient Rome, Ius (pronounced "yous") was a special word with a few important meanings. Most often, it meant a right that a Roman citizen (called a civis) had just because they were a citizen. These rights were written down in laws, so ius could also mean law itself. And because people went to law courts to protect their rights, ius also meant justice and the place where justice was found.

Romans really valued their rights. They saw them as one of the best things about being a Roman citizen. People from outside Rome (called peregrini) and freed slaves (libertini) didn't have these same rights, so they often needed Roman lawyers to help them in legal matters. Being a citizen also came with duties, called munera. These duties included serving in the army and paying taxes. Sometimes, people in important government jobs had special duties, like paying for road repairs. If citizens didn't do their duties, they could face serious consequences. Breaking the rights of other citizens was also a very serious matter, leading to severe penalties.

What Did Ius Mean?

In ancient Roman law, ius had two main ideas, which are still seen in words like "right" in English. Think of it this way:

Rules to Follow: Ius was like a set of rules that everyone had to obey. This is similar to how we think of "the law" today.
Freedom to Act: Ius also meant the freedom or ability to do certain things, or the duties you had. This is like saying you have "the right" to do something.

Justice and Fairness

Roman legal experts said that ius meant "the just and the fair," or simply justice. They believed that law was about making things right and fair for everyone. So, ius was the big idea of law, like the general principle of fairness. The actual written laws (called leges) were just the tools used to apply this idea of ius. This is why we have words like "justice" and "legislation"—justice is the ideal, and legislation is the specific rules.

Rights and Authority

Roman citizens understood that they had specific rights. These rights could be named, like "the right of..." For example, if you had ius, it meant you had the power or authority (called potestas) to do certain things or to expect certain things from others.

For example, a Roman general had the right to call citizens to serve in the army. Citizens were then under his authority. This wasn't a private request; it was a public duty granted by the government. Similarly, under the Roman Empire, the emperor had the main ius to manage all public affairs and could ask anyone for help. Historians often wrote about how different emperors used this power—some for good, and some for selfish reasons.

Important Roman Iura

Here are some examples of specific rights or legal principles from Roman times and later periods that used the word ius. The ones marked with the

symbol are from the Roman Republic and Empire.

Name	What it Means	When and Where it Was Used	What it Was About
ius abstinendi	Right to refuse	Roman Republic, Roman Empire	Romans cared a lot about families continuing. If someone died, their property and rights (their inheritance) would go to their heirs. If you were named an heir in a will, you were a "voluntary" heir and had the right to refuse the inheritance, especially if it came with a lot of debt. But if the owner died without a will, the law chose heirs (often relatives) who were called "necessary" heirs, and they usually couldn't refuse.
ius accrescendi	Right of increase or accrual	Roman Republic, Roman Empire	This right applied when there were several heirs to an inheritance. If one of the heirs died or couldn't inherit for some reason before the person who made the will died, the shares of the other heirs would increase. This rule was very important in Roman inheritance law. Later laws even tried to encourage people to have children by making it harder for childless people to inherit.
ius ad rem	Right to a thing (against a person)	Medieval kingdoms (not ancient Rome)	This idea came much later than ancient Rome. It meant you had the right to take legal action against someone to make them do something they promised or give you something they owed you. Romans would have handled this differently, often through criminal law.
ius abutendi	Right to consume	Roman Catholic Church, 14th century	This idea, developed by the Church, meant that if you owned something, you not only had the right to use it but also to use it up or consume it. For example, if you owned food, you had the right to eat it.
ius angariae	Right of angary	International law	This is a right in international law, especially during wartime. It allows a country fighting a war to take neutral ships or property within its territory and use them for its own needs, like transportation.
ius aquaeductus	Right of aqueduct	Civil law	This was a right that allowed landowners to bring water across or from another person's land, often for farming or drinking.
Jus belli	Law of war	International law	This refers to the rules and customs that apply during a war. It defines what countries can and cannot do when they are fighting, and also what neutral countries should do.
Jus canonicum	Canon law	Roman Catholic Church	This is the set of laws and rules made by the Christian Church, especially the Roman Catholic Church, to govern its members and activities.
Ius civile	Civil law (Roman citizens)	Roman Law	This was the law that applied only to Roman citizens. It was different from the ius gentium, which applied to foreigners or in cases involving both Romans and foreigners.
Ius commune	Common right	Civil law, English law	In Roman law, this meant the common and natural rule of what is right, different from special rules. In English law, it refers to the common law, which developed from customs and court decisions rather than written statutes.
Jus disponendi	Right of disposing	Roman Law	This is a key part of owning something. It means you have the right to sell, give away, or otherwise get rid of your property.
Ius edicendi	Right to make edicts	Roman Republic, Roman Empire	Important Roman officials (like praetors) had this right. It meant they could issue official orders or announcements (called edicts) about legal matters in their area of responsibility.
Ius fruendi	Right to reap fruits/profits	Roman Law	Another important part of ownership. This means you have the right to benefit from your property, like collecting rent from a building or harvesting crops from land.
Jus gentium	Law of nations	Roman Law	This was a system of law that Romans developed based on common rules found among different peoples. It was used in cases involving foreigners or between Romans and foreigners, as the ius civile only applied to Roman citizens. It was seen as a law that "all nations use."
Ius gladii	Right of the sword	Roman Law	This meant the power to punish crimes, including the power to order executions. It was a symbol of the state's authority to enforce laws.
Ius honorarium	Honorary law	Roman Law	This was a body of Roman law created by the edicts (official orders) of high-ranking magistrates, especially the praetors. They would adapt and improve the existing civil law for the public good.
Ius in re	A right in a thing	Civil law	This means having a direct right over a specific item or property. For example, ownership is a ius in re. It's different from ius ad rem, which is a right against a person to get a thing.
Ius italicum	Italian right	Roman Empire	This was a set of special rights and privileges given to cities and people in Italy (outside Rome) and later to some colonies. These included having their own government and being free from certain land taxes.
Ius Latii	Right of Latium	Roman Law	This was a special legal status given to people in Latium (a region near Rome). It meant they could use their own laws and sometimes even gain Roman citizenship.
Ius naturale	Natural law	Roman Law, philosophy	This was the idea of "natural law," or principles of law that are believed to be true and fair for everyone, based on natural reason. Roman thinkers believed these laws were taught by nature to all people. It's often seen as an ideal of what law should be—always fair and just.
Ius necis	Right of death	Roman Law	In ancient Roman times, a father had this extreme right over his children, meaning he could even put them to death. This was a very old and powerful right, though it became less common and was eventually limited.
Ius non scriptum	Unwritten law	Roman Law, English Law	This refers to law that isn't written down in statutes but comes from customs and traditions. It's like common practices that become accepted as law.
Ius pascendi	Right of pasturing cattle	Civil law, old English law	This was the right to let your cattle graze on someone else's land.
Ius possidendi	Right to possess property	Roman Law	This is another key part of ownership: the right or power to actually hold and control property.
Ius postliminii	Right of postliminy	Civil law, international law	In Roman law, if a Roman citizen was captured by an enemy but then returned, this right meant they would get back their original legal status and property as if they had never been captured. In international law, it's similar for property recaptured from an enemy.
Ius privatum	Private law	Roman Law	This part of law deals with the rights and affairs of individual people, like contracts or property disputes. It's different from "public law," which deals with the government and criminal justice.
Ius prohibendi	Right to prohibit	Roman Law	As an owner, you have the right to stop others from using your property, whether it's by possessing it, growing crops, or collecting rents.
Ius proprietatis	Right of property	Roman Law	This means the actual right of ownership over something, different from just having the right to possess it temporarily.
Ius publicum	Public law	Roman Law	This part of law deals with the government, its officials, and how criminal justice is handled. It also refers to the state's ownership of public property.
Ius scriptum	Written law	Roman Law, English Law	This refers to any law that is actually written down, like statutes or decrees. It's the opposite of ius non scriptum.
Ius singulare	Peculiar or individual rule	Civil law	This was a special rule that was different from the common law (ius commune), created for a specific reason or situation.
Ius trium liberorum	Right of three children	Roman Law	This was a special privilege given to parents who had three or more children. It included benefits like being excused from certain duties and having priority for public offices.
Ius utendi	Right to use property	Roman Law	This means you have the right to use your property, but without destroying it. For example, you can use a tool, but you can't break it on purpose.

Images for kids

A painting by Bernard d'Agesci showing Justice holding scales and a book with "God, the Law, and the King" and the Golden Rule.