Dowry
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dowry
n. from the days when a groom expected to profit from a marriage, the money and personal property which a bride brings to her new husband which becomes his alone. Dowry still exists in the Civil Code of Louisiana.
Copyright © 1981-2005 by Gerald N. Hill and Kathleen T. Hill. All Right reserved.
DOWRY. Formerly applied to mean that which a woman brings to her husband in marriage; this is now called a portion. This word is sometimes confounded with dower. Vide Co. Litt. 31; Civ. Code of Lo. art. 2317; Dig. 23, 3, 76; Code, 5, 12, 20.
A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States. By John Bouvier. Published 1856.