Legal Definitions - orbation

Orbation is a historical legal term that refers to the profound state of bereavement or deprivation experienced by an individual who has lost either their parents or their children, typically through death.

Here are some examples illustrating the concept of orbation:

• Imagine a young adult in the 18th century whose parents both tragically perished in a house fire. This individual would be described as experiencing orbation, having been deprived of both their mother and father.

  This example illustrates orbation as the loss and deprivation of one's parents.

• Consider a couple in a historical context who, after many years of marriage, suffered the loss of their only child to a widespread illness. The grief and the state of being without their offspring would be termed orbation.

  This scenario demonstrates orbation as the profound loss and deprivation of one's children.

• During a period of significant conflict in the past, a soldier might have returned home to find that his parents had died while he was away, and shortly thereafter, his own young child succumbed to a local epidemic. This individual would be in a state of orbation, having endured the deprivation of both his parents and his child.

  This example highlights how orbation can encompass the loss of both parents and children, reflecting a comprehensive state of familial deprivation within a historical context.