Displaying 1 glossary term in Spatial Units & Metrology starting with H
Spatial Units & Metrology
Old English / Latin
Hida (The Hide)
OE hīd < hīwisc ('household, family estate') / Lat. hida
The fundamental unit of land assessment in Anglo-Saxon England, representing the amount of arable land deemed necessary to maintain one household and family, nominally reckoned as 120 customary acres.
The hide served as the basis for public taxation (*Danegeld*), military recruitment (one soldier per five hides), and royal service across the realm.
“In Latin diplomas, 'hide' is routinely translated as *terra unius familiae*, *mansa*, *manens*, or *cassatus*.”
S 106 — Grant of Ten Hides in Mercia
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