Historical term for a one-tenth tax or offering, especially in religious contexts. Rare in modern Japanese; usually encountered in discussions of history or religion.
In medieval Europe, peasants paid a tithe to the church.
tithe; tithing
Historical kanji spelling for 'tithe'; rarely used in modern Japanese.
Kana spelling is more common in modern contexts when the term is used.
From Chinese 什一 (shíyī), literally 'one in ten', referring to a tenth part. The exact historical derivation into Japanese is uncertain.