Ancient Mesopotamian units of measurement
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Originally Ancient Mesopotamian weights and measures came from a collection of city states loosely organized by family, tribe and occupation. Consequently each city, kingdom and trade guild had its own standards until in the Letter of Nanse a call was made to agree on a common standard. After that the Sumerian city states reduced a plethora of multiple standards to a few agreed upon common groupings. All stated values are in precise unit fractions of a common standard.
Contents |
[edit] Sumerian units
[edit] Length
| Unit | Measure | Definition | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| digit, finger | |||
| šusi | little finger | 3/4 uban | 15 mm |
| shusi | ring finger | 5/6 uban | 16.67 mm |
| sheshi | index finger | 17.67 mm | |
| uban | thumb | 20 mm | |
| ell | |||
| šusi ell | short ell | 3 šusi | 45 mm |
| shusi ell | median ell | 3 shusi | 50 mm |
| sheshi ell | long ell | 3 sheshi | 53 mm |
| uban ell | thumb-ell | 3 uban | 60 mm |
| 18 shusi = 15 uban | |||
| palm | |||
| šusi palm | short palm | 4 šusi | 60 mm |
| shusi palm | median palm | 4 shusi | 67 mm |
| sheshi palm | long palm | 4 sheshi | 71 mm |
| uban palm | thumb-palm | 4 uban | 80 mm |
| 24 shusi = 20 uban | |||
| hand, qat | |||
| šusi qat | short hand | 5 šusi | 75 mm |
| shusi qat | median hand | 5 shusi | 84 mm |
| sheshi qat | long hand | 5 sheshi | 88 mm |
| uban qat | thumb-hand | 5 uban | 100 mm |
| 30 shusi = 25 uban | |||
| fist | |||
| šusi fist | short fist | 6 šusi | 90 mm |
| shusi fist | median fist | 6 shusi | 100 mm |
| sheshi fist | long fist | 6 sheshi | 106 mm |
| uban fist | thumb-fist | 6 uban | 120 mm |
| 36 shusi = 30 uban | |||
| span | |||
| šu-dù-a | span (‘hands’ + ‘to stack’) | 10 šusi | 150 mm |
| zipaþ | span | 10 shusi | 167 mm |
| zapaþ šu.bad | span | 10 sheshi | 176 mm |
| zipaþ | span | 10 uban | 200 mm |
| span of thumb and little finger | |||
| ñušur | shaftment | 15 šusi | 220.5 mm |
| šu-dù-a | shaftment | 12 shusi | 250 mm |
| foot | |||
| ñušur | foot | 20 šusi | 300 mm |
| šu-dù-a | foot | ||
| 18 shusi | ≈ 304.8 mm | ||
| 18½ shusi | ≈ 308.4 mm | ||
| ñiš | tool rod | 17 sheshi | 300 mm |
| ñìri | foot | 15 uban = 3 gat = ½ cubit | 300 mm |
| cubit | |||
| ku | ordinary cubit | 30 shusi= 25 uban | 500 mm |
| kus | cubit | 36 shusi = 30 uban | 600 mm |
| kùš | ‘hand’ + ‘arm’ | ||
| ell/cubit | |||
| šu-da | ell/cubit | ||
| double remen | |||
| ñìr | step; way, path | 60 shusi = 50 uban | = 1 m |
| kùš-numun | 2 ñiš-bad | = 1 m | |
| ñidri+ uru9 | ‘support’; úr, ‘leg(s)’; pace | = 1.5 m | |
| ñìri…gub | to step on ‘foot’ + ‘to stand’ | = 3 m | |
| qanu | 6 ammat | = 3.6 m | |
| še ñiš-è-a | ‘grain’ + ‘stick’ + ‘to exit from’ | harvested grain, just threshed and roughly measured with a stick |
|
| gi | reed (circular + to sprout) | 6 cubits | = 3 m |
| éše, éš[šè] | rope; measuring tape/cord | 10 nindan rods = 20 reeds = 120 cubits | |
| Area measure square roots | |||
| side of the ordinary iku | 60 ordinary kù | 30 m | |
| side of the ordinary iku | 60 qanu = 1/6 sos | ||
| side of the great iku | 60 qanu | 36 m | |
| Other | |||
| sos | = 360 ganu | ≈ 180 m | |
| parasang | = 30 sos | ≈ 5.4 km | |
| kapsu | = 2 parasang | ≈ 10.8 km | |
[edit] Area
- sar: Garden plot (Sumerian) = 1 square ninda, plot of land enclosed by a boundary dike/canal”.
-
- 4 square reeds = 144 square cubits
- iku (plural Akk. form of ég, ék, 'levee').:= 100 sar = 120 × 120 cubits
-
- = 3600 meters2 = 100 sar = 1 square 'rope' = 1/18 bùr
- 1 bùr:= 18 iku = 3 area éše = 1800 sar, the amount of land that supported a family
- 1 uzalak: = 1/4 of an iku = 25 sar
- 1 še: barley; grain; = 12 square uban
- 1 ubu : = 1/2 of an iku (= 50 sar).
- 1 éše, = 120 1/2 cubits or feet = the side of 1 square iku in area
- éš[ŠÈ]: = 6 iku; leash (can be an adverbial suffix like eš, 'much')
[edit] Volume
- 1 gur = 1 square ninda times 1 kùš = 144 cubic kùš = 18 cubic meters
- 1 bariga = 60 gur PI or UL in Old Sumerian period
- 1 bariga = 36 sìla in the Old Sumerian period
- 1 bán-rig-a = 6 bán. 'the bán from picking, gleaning'
[edit] Akkadian units
[edit] Length
- 1 ŠU.BAD: 'open hand' = 12 šusi = 220 mm = 8.66"
- 1 ammat cubit of 530 mm - 20.87 a unit of wheat or barley measure
- 1 ammatu := 6 long qat= 600 mm
- 1 ÑIŠ-BAD: =1 kùš. 600 mm
- 1 UŠ: = 6 ropes = 60 nindan rods.
teste
[edit] Area
- 2 AŠ: = 1/2 of an iku (= 50 sar).
- 1 iku: = 3600 meters2 = 100 sar = 1 square 'rope'
- 1 iku = 1/18 bùr plural Akk. form of ég, ék, 'levee'
- 1 éš[ŠÈ]: = 120 cubits = the side of 1 square iku in area
[edit] Volume
- 1 bariga = 60 sìla in the Old Akkadian and Neo-Sumerian periods.
[edit] Other
[edit] Volume
- 1 log:= 0.54 l
- 1 homer:= 720 log ≈ 390 l
[edit] Weight and monetary
[edit] Time
- year: The Sumerians used a 360 day year by 2100 BC.
- week: The Babylonians introduced the seven day week, due to the belief that seven brought bad luck, so they did not want to work the seventh day.
- hour: The 12 hour day and 12 hour night originates from Mesopotamia. The length of these hours changed through the year, being equally spaced over the time of light and dark, respectively.
[edit] Mesopotamian standards
The Greek root of stadios means to stand or have standing, to establish a standard.
In Mesopotamia the problem was that there were several different standards so in the time of Gudea an agreement was circulated between the various city states much like that which is presently being negotiated in Europe.
[edit] Ancient Mesopotamian weights and measures
The weights and measures of Mesopotamia gradually developed with the associated city states. The Sumerian number system uses a base 60 positional notation, and is the origin for the division of 60 for hours and angular degrees. The Akkadian system adopts the Sumerian. Over a period of several millennia international trade and commerce spread the idea of standards of measure based on definitions of land and property throughout the ancient near east.
International trade required the expansion of the arrangement throughout the ancient Near East as a common standard much like our metric system. The basis of the standard was a definition of a geographic degree divided into 600 parts know as stadia which were further divided into 600 feet.
Mesopotamia
- In Mesopotamia there was the sos = 180 m
- The copper bar cubit of Nippur, the oldest preserved standard bar, defines the Sumerian cubit (kù) as half a metre. This was widely used in 3rd millennium BC.
- The Babylonian (or Salamis) cubit was about the same size and is portrayed in a rule on the statue of Gudea (Lagash, dated around 2575 BC) which depending on source measures in a range from 496 to 500 mm.
[edit] Contemporary standards of neighboring cultures
[edit] Egypt
- In Egypt the khet was 100 royal cubits
- In Egypt 210 khet were an itrw or hour of travel on the river
- In Egypt 300 royal cubits were the stadia of Eratosthenes = 157.5 m, 700 to a degree at
[edit] Alexandria
- In Egypt 350 Royal cubits were a minute of march = 183.75 m
- In Egypt 60 minutes of march were an atur or hour of march
[edit] Persia
- In Persia there were stadia of 700 feet = 222 m or 500 to a degree on the equator. This was the geographic stadia of Marianus of Tyre and Ptolomy
[edit] Greece
- In Attic Greece a milos was 8 stadions of 600 pous = 185 m, 600 to a degree of 111 km
- In Ionic Greece a milos was 8 stadions of 625 pous = 185 m, 600 to a degree of 111 km
[edit] Rome
- In Rome a milliare of 8 stadiums of 625 pes = 185 m, 600 to a degree of 111 km
