natural law

English

Noun

natural law (countable and uncountable, plural natural laws)

1. (philosophy) An ethical theory that posits the existence of a law whose content is set by nature and that therefore has validity everywhere.
2. (law) A generally accepted concept of the philosophical system of legal and moral principles purportedly deriving from a natural or divine justice and not from a position of positive law but of ideas of right and wrong.
3. Law of nature, relating to natural phenomena.

Related terms

• physical law (contradistinction)

Translations

An ethical theory

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 自然法 (zh) (zìránfǎ)

• Czech: přirozené právo n
• Dutch: natuurrecht (nl) n
• Finnish: luonnonoikeus (fi)
• French: droit naturel (fr) m
• German: Naturgesetz (de) n

• Hungarian: természeti törvény
• Italian: giusnaturalismo (it) m
• Japanese: 自然法 (しぜんほう, shizenhō)
• Korean: 자연법(自然法) (ko) (jayeonbeop)
• Romanian: drept natural (ro) n
• Russian: есте́ственное пра́во n (jestéstvennoje právo)
• Spanish: derecho natural m
• Swedish: naturrätt c
• Vietnamese: luật của tự nhiên

A generally accepted concept of the philosophical system of legal and moral principles

• Finnish: luonnonoikeus (fi)

• Italian: giusnaturalismo (it) m

Law of nature

• Finnish: luonnonlaki (fi)
• German: Naturgesetz (de) n

• Lithuanian: darna f
• Romanian: lege a naturii f

References

• Black's Law Dictionary 10th Edition (2014)