Latin word before names

[Wayne N]

At first glance, I thought these words were Item that appear before/near many of the names in a 1631 Latin Will (not the probate)? itim, itima, itimas. Although they often appear with a flourish above.

[Bookbox]

Probably l(egi)timas/e etc. (= 'lawful'), but it's hard to be 100% sure without more context.
It often follows n(atu)rali etc., in the context of 'natural and lawful son/daughter', in case that helps?

[Wayne N]

As always, spot on - and many thanks for the explanation, even though I didn’t provide much context.
I’ll keep it in mind for next time.

.. , Annam Shoncke, filiam n(atu)ralem et l(egi)timam, Mariam Norwood al(ia)s Shoncke def(un)c(t)am, dum vixit, filiam n(atu)ralem et l(egi)timam praefati Thomae Norwood senioris def(un)c(t)i, ..

Three pages to work through (1 down) -  the text is relatively clear, with fewer contractions and quite a bit of repetition. It should be a good exercise to improve. I’m trying not to post too much on this one.