Legal Definitions - puer

In ancient Roman law, the term puer (plural: pueri) had two primary meanings:

• It referred to a child, most commonly a boy, indicating their age and status within a family.
• It could also denote a male slave, regardless of his age, emphasizing his legal status as property rather than a free person.

The related term, puerility, described a specific legal status in Roman and later Civil law. This period spanned a child's life between infancy (when they were considered too young to understand legal matters) and puberty (when they were deemed mature enough to take on certain legal responsibilities). During the stage of puerility, a child had limited legal capacity and typically required a guardian to act on their behalf in significant legal transactions.

Examples:

• A Roman citizen, drafting his will, might specify that his inheritance should pass to his puer, referring to his young son who was still under the age of legal majority. This designation would trigger specific legal provisions for managing the inheritance until the son reached adulthood.

  This example illustrates puer in its sense of a young male child, highlighting the legal framework surrounding minors and inheritance in Roman society.

• A wealthy Roman senator might own several pueri who served in various roles within his household, such as personal attendants, scribes, or domestic workers. These individuals, regardless of their actual age, were legally classified as slaves.

  Here, puer refers to a male slave, demonstrating how the term could denote a legal status of servitude rather than solely a young age, a critical distinction in Roman law.

• If a ten-year-old Roman boy inherited a substantial property, the legal system would recognize him as being in the stage of puerility. Consequently, he would not be permitted to sell or manage the property independently; a designated guardian (a tutor) would be legally required to oversee these affairs until the boy reached puberty and gained greater legal capacity.

  This example demonstrates puerility as a specific legal status that defined a child's limited ability to engage in legal actions and the necessity of guardianship during a particular developmental stage.