Rights
Rights
Rights (pronunciation: /raɪts/) are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory[1]. Rights are of essential importance in such disciplines as law and ethics, especially theories of justice and deontology[2].
Etymology
The term 'rights' comes from the Old English 'riht', which originally means 'straight', 'upright', 'correct', or 'doing what is just or fair'[3].
Types of Rights
Rights are often classified into two main types: Natural rights and Legal rights. Natural rights are those that are not dependent on the laws, customs, or beliefs of any particular culture or government, and are therefore universal and inalienable. Legal rights are those bestowed onto a person by a given legal system[4].
Natural Rights
Natural rights are rights which are "natural" in the sense of "not artificial, not man-made", as in rights deriving from human nature or from the edicts of a god[5]. They are universal; that is, they apply to all people, and do not derive from the laws of any specific society[6].
Legal Rights
Legal rights, in contrast, are based on a society's customs, laws, statutes or actions by legislatures[7]. An example of a legal right is the right to vote of citizens[8].
Related Terms
- Human rights
- Civil rights
- Political rights
- Economic, social and cultural rights
- Collective rights
- Animal rights
References
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Rights
- Wikipedia's article - Rights
This WikiMD dictionary article is a stub. You can help make it a full article.
Languages: - East Asian
中文,
日本,
한국어,
South Asian
हिन्दी,
Urdu,
বাংলা,
తెలుగు,
தமிழ்,
ಕನ್ನಡ,
Southeast Asian
Indonesian,
Vietnamese,
Thai,
မြန်မာဘာသာ,
European
español,
Deutsch,
français,
русский,
português do Brasil,
Italian,
polski