trithing

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English

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Etymology

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From Middle English trithing, tridinge, from Old English *þriðing, from Old Norse þriðjungr (third part).

Noun

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trithing (plural trithings)

  1. (historical) a riding (one of three ancient divisions of a county in England)
    • 1771, William, Sir Blackstone, “Of the Countries Subject to the Laws of England”, in Commentaries on the Laws of England[1], volume 1, page 116:
      Where a county is divided into three of these intermediate jurisdictions, they are called trithings, which were antiently governed by a trithing-reeve. These trithings still subsist in the large county of York, where by an easy corruption they are denominated ridings; the north, the east, and the west-riding.

Derived terms

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References

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