A legal fine or compensation paid in Anglo-Saxon law for engaging in a fight or breach of the peace.
From Old English 'feohtan' (fight) plus 'wite' (fine or penalty), a compound from the Anglo-Saxon legal system. 'Wite' comes from Proto-Germanic roots meaning punishment.
Medieval justice worked through financial penalties—break the peace, pay the fine. 'Fightwite' shows how Old English named specific legal violations with compounds, a system that gave us 'heriot' and other archaic legal terms!
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