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Grimm's law

(Encyclopedia)Grimm's law, principle of relationships in Indo-European languages, first formulated by Jakob Grimm in 1822 and a continuing subject of interest and investigation to 20th-century linguists. It shows t...

Grimm, Jakob

(Encyclopedia)Grimm, Jakob grĭm [key], 1786–1859, and which did much to encourage the romantic revival of folklore. Among their best-known stories are “Hansel and Gretel,” “Rapunzel,” “The Breman Town...

Grimm, Friedrich Melchior, Baron

(Encyclopedia)Grimm, Friedrich Melchior, Baron frēˈdrĭkh mĕlˈkhēôr bärōnˈ grĭm [key], 1723–1807, German man of letters in France. He contributed to the Encyclopédie articles on music that were bellige...

law

(Encyclopedia)law, rules of conduct of any organized society, however simple or small, that are enforced by threat of punishment if they are violated. Modern law has a wide sweep and regulates many branches of cond...

civil law

(Encyclopedia)civil law, as used in this article, a modern legal system based upon Roman law, as distinguished from common law. Civil law is based on written legal codes, a hallmark of the Roman legal system, in wh...

common law

(Encyclopedia)common law, system of law that prevails in England and in countries colonized by England. The name is derived from the medieval theory that the law administered by the king's courts represented the co...

Beer's law

(Encyclopedia)Beer's law [for August Beer], physical law stating that the quantity of light absorbed by a substance dissolved in a nonabsorbing solvent is directly proportional to the concentration of the substance...

natural law

(Encyclopedia)natural law, theory that some laws are basic and fundamental to human nature and are discoverable by human reason without reference to specific legislative enactments or judicial decisions. Natural la...

canon law

(Encyclopedia)canon law, in the Roman Catholic Church, the body of law based on the legislation of the councils (both ecumenical and local) and the popes, as well as the bishops (for diocesan matters). It is the la...

martial law

(Encyclopedia)martial law, temporary government and control by military authorities of a territory or state, when war or overwhelming public disturbance makes the civil authorities of the region unable to enforce i...