Law. Obs. Also 6–7 araine, arraine. [a. late AFr. arraigner, arainer, the latter originating in a mis-spelling of aramer, OF. aramier, also aramir, cogn. w. Pr. aramir, OCat. aremir (Diez):—late L. adhramīre (adrh-, adchr-, adcr-) in Salic and Longobard Laws; f. ad to + *hramīre (in Pr. ramir), according to Grimm and Diez ad. Goth. hramjan, whence ushramjan to crucify, perh. to hang up. In England, the AFr. aramer was re-latinized as arramāre (in Bracton, Fleta).
The Goth. hramjan is prob. cogn. w. Gr. κρεμα- ‘hang.’ The literal sense in which it was taken into late L. is unknown: Müllenhoff (in Waitz, Alte Recht der sal. Franken, 277) shows that it probably named some sensible, perhaps symbolical, action, which was afterwards disused and forgotten, while the technical phrases containing the word remained: see adramire sacramentum, testimonia, testes, vadium, bellum, arramare assisam, in Ducange. The true origin of arraign in this sense was pointed out by Spelman (s.v. Adrhamire), but as he unfortunately failed to see that it was a distinct word from the prec., and took aramer as the source of both, his successors rejected his truth along with his error, and in all Dictionaries this word now erroneously stands as a sense of the prec.]
To appeal to, claim, demand; in phr. arraine (i.e., arrame) an assize.
[c. 1275. Bracton, IV. i. 15. Et arramavit assisam novæ disseysinæ.
c. 1290. Britton, III. vi. 13. Si ambedeus eynt arramé assise de mort de auncestre vers une estraunge persone.
1481. Littleton, § 442. Si home seit disseisi, et il arraine un assise envers le disseisour.]
1528. Perkins, Profit. Bk., v. § 377. If his disseisor arraign an assise against him.
1574. trans. Littleton Tenures, 78 a. The lessee arraineth an assise of Novel disseisin of ye land againste the lessour.
1628. Coke, On Litt., 262 b. To arraigne the Assise is to cause the Tenant to be called, to make the plaint, and to set the cause in such order as the Tenant may bee enforced to answer thereunto; and is deriued of the French word Arraigner.
1641. Termes de la Ley, 26. Arraine is to put a thing in order, or in his place: As hee is said to arraine an Assise of Novel Disseisin.
1714. Fortescue-Aland, in Fortescue’s Abs. & Lim. Mon., 126.
1809. Tomlins, Law Dict., s.v. Arraign.
