A number or company of ten householders who, dwelling near each other, were sureties or frankpledges to the king for the good behavior of each other; a decennary.
Peace-keeping group of variable size (most men over 12 years of age were enrolled in a tithing). (Bennett, Judith M. Women in the Medieval English Countryside, 235) Unit of ten or twelve village men mutually responsible for each other's conduct. (Gies, Frances and Joseph. Life in a Medieval Village, 246) Related terms: Tithingman / View of Frankpledge
derived from 'ten householders', each of whom lived on a 'hide' of land — historically there were then 100 tithings to a 'hundred'