putative son

H. Mack Horton訳のTale of Genjiを読んでいます。今日取り上げる単語は四十七帖匂宮(The Perfumed Prince)からです。

Genji, the Shining Prince, was dead, and no one could take his place. But his grandson, the Third Prince, son of present Emperor and the Akashi Empress, and his putative son by the Third Princess (actually the son of Kashiwagi) were particularly known for their good looks.

"putative son" はどんな息子でしょうか？　辞書を見ます。

・Oxford English Dictionary: believed to be the person or thing mentioned: the putative father of this child
・Collins Dictionary: If you describe someone or something as putative, you mean that they are generally thought to be the thing mentioned.: ...a putative father.
・Cambridge English Dictionary: generally thought to be or to exist, even if this may not really be true: The putative leader of the terrorist cell was arrested yesterday.

なるほど。源氏物語を読むと "putative son" やら "putative father" があちらこちらに居ても不思議はありません。