Simple English definitions for legal terms
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Term: SWOLING
Definition: Swoling is an old word that describes the amount of land that can be plowed in a year. It is also called a hide of land. Sworn brothers are people who promise to share their good and bad times with each other by taking an oath. Sworn clerks in chancery were officers who helped the six main clerks in the Court of Chancery by doing clerical tasks like keeping records and making copies of legal documents. This office was abolished in 1842.
Definition: Swoling (swuul-ing) is a historical term that refers to the amount of land that can be plowed in a year, or a hide of land.
Examples: In medieval times, a farmer's swoling was the amount of land they could plow in a year using a team of oxen. This measurement was important for determining how much food could be produced and how much rent the farmer owed to their lord.
Explanation: The term swoling was used in medieval England to measure the productivity of a farmer's land. It was based on the amount of land that could be plowed in a year, which was determined by the number of oxen the farmer had available to work the fields. The more land a farmer could plow, the more food they could produce and the more valuable their land was considered to be.