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Oyez


Oyez (/ˈjɛz/, /ˈj/, /ˈjɛs/, more rarely with the word stress at the beginning) is a traditional interjection said two or three times in succession to introduce the opening of a court of law, especially in Great Britain. The interjection is also traditionally used by town criers to attract the attention of the public to public proclamations.

Until the 18th century, speaking English in an English court of law was not required and one could instead use Law French, a form of French that evolved after the Norman Conquest, when Anglo-Norman became the language of the upper classes in England. Oyez descends from the Anglo-Norman oyez, the plural imperative form of oyer, from Old French ouïr, "to hear"; thus oyez means "hear ye" and was used as a call for silence and attention. It would have been common in medieval England.


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