"I, Maureen Watt, depone aat I wull be leal and bear ae full alleadgance tae Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth," swore the newly-elected Member of the Scottish Parliament in the dialect of the North-East of Scotland. (Translation: "I swear that I will be loyal and bear full allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.") "Depone," a word used in Scots law for "testify" since the 15th century, is perfectly at home in the oath. The word originated from Latin "deponere," meaning "to put down." The related English verb "depose," referring to testimony, entered the language through the same root the following century. Though used less frequently in American English than "depose," "depone" is no stranger to the American court system.