摘要： 罗马法和日耳曼法均被认为是法律形式主义传统的源头和代表。究其原因，很大部分是因为西方这两大古代法律秩序都崇尚形式，很多时候将规范的效力与形式挂钩。而形式的意涵在历史发展中经历了连续演化与不断阐释，时至今日，转变为现代民法要式制度的基础。通过历史考察(尤其是论题的追踪)，揭示出民法上的要式制度和形式主义法学论题之间的关系，有助于我们深入把握近现代民法本身的演变。

关键词: 法律行为形式, 形式主义, 要式行为, 公文书, 要式口约

Abstract: Roman law and Germanic law were both classified as the representations and origins of the formalism legal tradition.The reasons of this classification owe partly to the fact that both of the aforesaid legal orders linked the effects of its legal norms to certain formal acts.Such topics were developed into the basis of formal legal transaction in modern civil law.By exploring the historical context of related topics, such as relations between formal legal transactions and legal formalism, the image of the evolution of modern civil law can be more clear.

Key words: Form of Legal Transaction, Formalism, Formal Transaction, Public Instrument, Stipulatio