eigne

English

Etymology

Old French aisné, ainsné. Compare esnecy.

Adjective

eigne (not comparable)

(law, obsolete) eldest; firstborn
- 1771, William, Sir Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England‎, volume 2, page 248:
  Because the canon law (following the civil) did allow such bastard eignè to be legitimate, on the subsequent marriage of his mother: and therefore the laws of England (though they would not admit either the civil or canon law to rule the inheritance of this kingdom, yet) paid such a regard to a person thus peculiarly circumstanced, that, after the land had descended to his issue, they would not unravel the matter again, and suffer his estate to be shaken.
(law, obsolete) entailed; belonging to the eldest son

Derived terms

bastard eigne

Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for “eigne”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.)