Meaning & Definition of Jurisprudence

The word Jurisprudence derives from the Latin term juris prudentia, meaning 'the study, knowledge, or science of law.'

• Jurisprudence is called the eye of law and the grammar of law.
• It is regarded as the philosophy of law, dealing with the nature and functions of law.
• It contains the general principles upon which actual rules of law are based, and is also called the mother of all Laws.
• A good jurist is supposed to have a fair knowledge of human beings usually concerned with Psychology of state of mind.

Key Definitions:

• Fitzgerald: Jurisprudence is the name given to certain type of investigations into law.
• Salmond: Science of the first principles of civil law that is to say, the law of the Land .
• Austin: Philosophy of Positive Law.
• Holland: The formal science of positive law.
• Roscoe Pound: Social engineering.
• Legal Realism: Practice of courts.
• Keeton: The study and systematic arrangement of the general principles of law.
• Oxford Dictionary: The systematic and formulated knowledge or science of human law.
• Bentham: A body of ordered knowledge dealing with a particular species of law.