The history of
codification dates back to ancient
Babylon. The earliest surviving civil code is the
Code of Ur-Nammu, written around 2100–2050 BC. The
Corpus Juris Civilis, a codification of
Roman law produced between 529 and 534 AD by the
Byzantine emperor
Justinian I, forms the basis of
civil law legal systems that would rule over
Continental Europe. Other codified laws used since ancient times include various texts used in
religious law, such as the
Law of Manu in
Hindu law, Islamic
Sharia law, the
Mishnah in Jewish
Halakha law, and the
Canons of the Apostles in Christian
Canon law.
European codes and influences on other continents (around 1907). In 1911, it became the first civil code to include commercial law (
Swiss Code of Obligations). The idea of codification re-emerged during the
Age of Enlightenment, when it was believed that all spheres of life could be dealt with in a conclusive system based on human
rationality, following from the experience of the early codifications of
Roman Law during the
Roman Empire. The first attempts at modern codification were made in the second half of the 18th century in
Germany, when the states of
Austria,
Prussia,
Bavaria and
Saxony began to codify their laws. The first statute that used this denomination was the
Codex Maximilianeus bavaricus civilis of 1756 in Bavaria, still using the Latin language. It was followed in 1792 by a legal compilation that included civil, penal, and constitutional law, the
Allgemeines Landrecht für die Preussischen Staaten (General National Law for the Prussian States) promulgated by King
Frederick II the Great. In Austria, the first step towards fully-fledged codification were the yet incomplete
Codex Theresianus (compiled between 1753 and 1766), the
Josephinian Code (1787) and the complete
West Galician Code (enacted as a test in
Galicia in 1797). The final
Austrian Civil Code (called
Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, ABGB) was only completed in 1811 after the dissolution of the
Holy Roman Empire under the influence of the
Napoleonic Wars. One of the first countries to follow up through
legal transplants in codification was
Serbia, the
Serbian Civil Code (1844). Meanwhile, the
French Napoleonic Code (
Code Civil) was enacted in 1804 after only a few years of preparation, but it was a child of the
French Revolution, which is strongly reflected by its content. The French code was the most influential one because it was introduced in many countries standing under French occupation during the
Napoleonic Wars. In particular, countries such as
Italy, the
Benelux countries,
Spain,
Portugal (with the Civil Code of 1867, later replaced by the Civil Code of 1966, which is strongly influenced by the German BGB), the
Latin American countries, the province of
Quebec in
Canada, and all other former French colonies which base their civil law systems to a strong extent on the Napoleonic Code. It is a misconception that the state of
Louisiana in the
United States based their civil code on the Napoleonic Code. Rather, the drafters of the code were instructed to write a civil code based on the current laws, and the laws that were in effect at the time were Spanish laws based on
Las Siete Partidas. The late 19th century and the beginning 20th century saw the emergence of the School of
Pandectism, whose work peaked in the
German Civil Code (BGB), which was enacted in 1900 in the course of Germany's national unification project, and in the
Swiss Civil Code (
Zivilgesetzbuch) of 1907. Those two codes had been most advanced in their systematic structure and classification from fundamental and general principles to specific areas of law (e.g. contract law, labour law, inheritance law). While the French Civil Code was structured in a "casuistic" approach attempting to regulate every possible case, the German BGB and the later Swiss ZGB applied a more abstract and systematic approach. Therefore, the BGB had a great deal of influence on later codification projects in countries as diverse as
Japan,
Greece,
Turkey, Portugal (1966 Civil Code) and
Macau (1999 Civil Code). Since 2002 with the First law of the Civil Code of Catalonia, Parliament of Catalonia's several laws have approved the successive books of the
Civil Code of Catalonia. This has replaced most of the Compilation of the Civil Law of Catalonia, several special laws and two partial codes. Only the Sixth book, relating to obligations and contracts, has to be approved. In Europe, apart from the
common law countries of the United Kingdom and Ireland, only
Scandinavia remained untouched by the codification movement. The particular tradition of the civil code originally enacted in a country is often thought to have a lasting influence on the methodology employed in legal interpretation. Scholars of
comparative law and economists promoting the
legal origins theory of (financial) development usually subdivide the countries of the
civil law tradition as belonging either to the French, Scandinavian or German group (the latter including
Germany,
Austria,
Switzerland,
Liechtenstein,
Japan,
China,
Taiwan,
South Korea and
Ukraine).
Civil codes in the Americas The first civil code promulgated in
Canada was that of
New Brunswick of 1804, inspired by the 1800 project of the French civil code, known as the ''Projet de l'an VIII
(project of the 8th year); nevertheless, in 1808 a Digeste de la loi civile'' was sanctioned. In the
United States, codification appears to be widespread at a first glance, but U.S. legal codes are actually collections of common law rules and a variety of
ad hoc statutes; that is, they do not aspire to complete logical coherence. For example, the
California Civil Code largely codifies common law doctrine and is very different in form and content from all other civil codes. Another unique example is the
Louisiana Civil Code, based on Spanish law
Las Siete Partidas, but incorrectly credited to be based on French Law. In 1825,
Haiti promulgated a
Code Civil, that was simply a copy of the Napoleonic one; while
Louisiana abolished its
Digeste, replacing it with the ''Code Civil de l'État de la Louisiane'' the same year. The
Mexican state of
Oaxaca promulgated the first Latin American civil code in 1827, copying the French civil code. Later on, in 1830, the civil code of
Bolivia, a summarized copy of the French one, was promulgated by
Andrés de Santa Cruz. The latest, with some changes, was adopted by
Costa Rica in 1841. The
Dominican Republic, in 1845, put into force the original Napoleonic code, in French language (a translation in Spanish was published in 1884). In 1852,
Peru promulgated its own civil code (based on a project of 1847), which was not a simple copy or imitation of the French one, but presented a more original text based on the Castillan law (of
Roman origin) that was previously in force on the Peruvian territory.
Chile promulgated its
civil code in 1855, an original work in confront with the French code both for the scheme and for the contents (similar to the Castillan law in force in that territory) that was written by
Andrés Bello (begun in 1833). This code was integrally adopted by
Ecuador in 1858;
El Salvador in 1859;
Venezuela in 1862 (only during that year);
Nicaragua in 1867;
Honduras in 1880 (until 1899, and again since 1906);
Colombia in 1887; and
Panama (after its separation from Colombia in 1903). In 1865, the Code Civil du Bas-Canada (or
Civil Code of Lower Canada) was promulgated in
Lower Canada (later the
Canadian province of
Quebec). It was replaced in 1991 by a new
Civil Code of Quebec, which came into effect in 1994.
Uruguay promulgated its code in 1868, and
Argentina in 1869 (work by
Dalmacio Vélez Sársfield).
Paraguay adopted its code in 1987, and in 1877
Guatemala adopted the Peruvian code of 1852.
Nicaragua in 1904 replaced its civil code of 1867 by adopting the Argentine code. In 1916
Brazil enacted its civil code (project of
Clovis Bevilacqua, after rejecting the project by
Teixeira de Freitas that was translated by the Argentines to prepare their project), that entered into effect in 1917 (in 2002, the
Brazilian Civil Code was replaced by a new text). Brazilian Civil Code of 1916 was considered, by many, as the last code of the 19th century despite being adopted in the 20th century. The reason behind that is that the Brazilian Code of 1916 was the last of the important codes from the era of codifications in the world that had strong liberal influences, and all other codes enacted thereafter were deeply influenced by the social ideals that emerged after World War I and the Soviet Socialist Revolution.
Panama in 1916 decided to adopt the Argentine code, replacing its code of 1903.
Cuba had the old Civil Code of Spain until the year 1987 when the
National Assembly of People's Power approved the Cuban Civil Code, Law 59.
Civil codes in Asia The Portuguese Civil Code of 1868 was introduced in the Portuguese overseas territories of Asia (
Portuguese India,
Macau and
Portuguese Timor) from 1870, with local modifications being latter introduced. It continued to be in effect in the former Portuguese India even after the end of the Portuguese rule in 1961. It is still in force in the present Indian territories of
Goa (locally referred as the
Goa civil code),
Daman and Diu and
Dadra and Nagar Haveli. As Macau and Portuguese Timor were still under Portuguese rule when the Portuguese Civil Code of 1868 was replaced by that of 1966, this later was adopted by these territories. In
East Timor (ex-Portuguese Timor), the Portuguese Code was replaced by the Indonesian Code when Indonesia occupied that territory in 1975. Macau adopted its own Civil Code in 1999, although this being based in the Portuguese Code of 1966. Also the civil code of Spain of 1889 would be enforced in its
colony, the
Philippines, and this would remain in effect even after the end of
Spanish rule until the
Philippines enacted its own
Civil Code in 1950 after almost fifty years of U.S. rule. Many legal systems of other countries in Asia are within the civil law tradition and have enacted a civil code, mostly derived from the German civil code; that is the case of
China,
Japan,
Korea,
Thailand (the Civil and Commercial Code),
Taiwan and
Indonesia (which is influenced by the Dutch Civil Code, ). The
Indian Constitution in its Directive Principles of State Policy recommends to a
Uniform Civil Code in ts Article 44. The Indian parliament is yet to pass a law in this regard. ==Contents of a civil code==