LIKIN

Etymology

Noun

likin (countable and uncountable, plural likins)

(obsolete, historical) A Chinese provincial tax levied at many inland stations upon imports or articles in transit.

Source: Wiktionary

Li"kin`, n. [Written also lekin.] [ Chin. li kin; li the thousandth part of a tael + kin money.]

Definition: A Chinese provincial tax levied at many inland stations upon imports or articles in transit.

"Likin," which used to be regarded as illegal, as one of the many, "squeezes" imposed by the mandarins, is, in Jamieson's opinion, just as legal as any other form of taxation. A. R. Colquhoun.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition