Murder refers to the taking of another person's life under conditions specifically covered by law in that jurisdiction. Most jurisdictions define different degrees of murder. The precise definition of the different types of murder can vary greatly by jurisdiction. There are a number of jurisdictions that base their definitions of murder on the Model Penal Code.
A non-exclusive list of the different types of murder include capital murder, first-degree murder, second-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, and involuntary manslaughter. One of the oldest known laws against the killing of another person is found in the Sumerian Code of Ur-Nammu, which is dated between 2100 and 2050 B.C. A rough translation of the law is: "If a man commits a murder, that man must be killed." Roughly 520,000 people were murdered worldwide in the year 2000.