This is called non standard measurements. Using your body to estimate length your hand.
Name The Various Way Of Measurement Of Length Used In Ancient
Ancient measurement using body parts. These units are thus considered to be human scale and anthropocentric. Egyptians mainly used their cubits to measure objects. Although its a nonstandard unit of measurement its conveniently with you all the time. Ancient measurement of length was based on the human body for example the length of a foot the length of a stride the span of a hand and the breadth of a thumb. Protractors first were identified as being used in the 1600s. At some point years ago i picked up the seemingly useless piece of information that an ancient unit of measurement called the cubit was the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger.
An average foot is about 12 inches long. There were unbelievably many different measurement systems developed in early times most of them only being used in a small locality. The semi circular tool is marked with angle measurements from 0 to 180 degrees. Your forearm is about 15 feet 46 centimeters. For an average adult male at least average as of a couple of millennia ago a cubit works out to about 18 inches 457cm. The units of length seem to have originally been anthropic based on various parts of the human body although these were standardized using cubit rods strands of rope and official measures maintained at some temples.
Each persons body part differed from another persons body part. There is little difference between what they looked like then and now. Your body can be used as a measuring tool when you dont have a measuring tape conveniently with you. Digit in latin digitus could mean either finger or toe. The distance between your nose. Cubit from latin cubitum the elbow.
The width of your palm is about 4 inches 10 centimeters. It does not include derived units further unless they are also themselves human based. Your forearm from elbow to fingertip. The ancient egyptian units of measurement are those used by the dynasties of ancient egypt prior to its incorporation in the roman empire and general adoption of roman greek and byzantine units of measurement. Following alexander the greats conquest of persia and subsequent de. A cubit was a measurement based on the forearm from elbow to fingertip.
Eight body based units of measurement before we had precise standardized units of measure such as meters and feet lengths and even ocasionally volumes were reckoned based on the average dimensions of human body parts. Protractors which are semi circular measurement tools were used in ancient times to measure angles between two intersecting lines. The exact length varied according to whose arm was being used and could be from 18 to 22 inches. From nose to finger tip. This is a list of units of measure based on human body parts or the attributes or abilities of humans. It might also help you remember the measurements because you have to use parts of your body instead of inches feet and yards.
Ancient people measured objects using different body parts. The same is true of digit in modern english.
Gallery of Ancient Measurement Using Body Parts
