The Scottish Archive Network (SCAN) Glossary defines archaic words and phrases, mostly Scots law terminology, commonly found in documents and records in Scotland's archives. If you think a word or phrase should be added to the glossary, or an existing entry could be defined better, please contact us. Since the SCAN project ended, the Dictionary of the Scots Language has gone online at http://www.dsl.ac.uk/, and this should be consulted for Scots words and phrases (including legal terms).
was when a person was considered to be incapable
of performing a certain act of the grounds of
youth, and was generally applied to those under
21; it might be found spelt "non-age",
and a minor might be said to "be in nonage"
a feudal casualty.
This was the rents from a dead vassal's
property which fell due to his superior
until the vassal's heir was entered with the
superior
notarial instrument
strictly, any document drawn up by a notary.
The document referred to as such in the late
nineteenth century may concern the adoption
of a trust by trustees, or the addition of
new trustees, but there are various other
forms
in the middle ages, almost invariably a churchman.
who had been admitted to practice by the authority
of the Pope or the Holy Roman Emperor.
But there seem to have been little to stop anyone
who could write from setting himself up as a
notary, and the authority of some them to do
so and their trustworthiness were, to say the
least, doubtful - Scottish parliaments were
much concerned about "false notars".
After the Reformation, they were regulated to
become public functionaries who, on passing
an examination and trial were admitted by the
Court
of Session to the power of making instruments
which had "faith in law"; these could
be about any "lawful and honest business
" but in practise were usually instruments
of sasine.
a charter containing a clause in which the
superior of a property grants it "of new"
because of a defect in the original title to
the property or because either the vassal or
superior wanted to get the conditions of the
original grant altered
