Cubit facts for kids
Cubit is the name for an old unit of measurement. Many ancient people used it to measure length. It was one of the very first ways people recorded how long things were.
People measured things using their own forearm length. They would compare items like rope, cloth, wood, or stone to the distance from their elbow to the tip of their middle finger. The ancient Egyptians even had a special symbol for the cubit in their hieroglyphs. This unit was used for a very long time, from ancient times through the Middle Ages and into early modern times.
The length of a cubit could vary. A common "natural cubit" was about the distance from your elbow to your thumb or another finger. This was usually around 45.72 centimeters (18 inches). It was also thought of as 24 digits, 6 palms, or 1½ feet. The Roman people and different Greek groups used this "natural cubit" in their measuring systems.
Different Cubit Lengths
Over time, people used different lengths for the cubit. These were often based on how many "palms" or "digits" (finger widths) they included:
- A cubit of 6 palms was about 45.0 cm (18 inches).
- A cubit of 7 palms was about 52.5 cm (21 inches).
- A cubit of 8 palms was about 60.0 cm (24 inches).
- A cubit of 9 palms was about 67.5 cm (27 inches).
The Romans also had a longer measure called the ulna. This was about 120 cm (4 feet) long. It was measured from a person's hip to the fingers of their opposite outstretched arm.
The English yard is a unit of length still used today. Its exact origin is not fully known. The English ell was another long unit, like a very big cubit. It was about 114 cm (45 inches) long, or 15 palms.
Related pages
Images for kids
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An ancient Egyptian cubit rod from the Liverpool World Museum.
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A cubit rod that belonged to Maya, an Egyptian official from 1336–1327 BC.
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A cubit rod from the Turin Museum.
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The Nippur cubit-rod, found in the Archeological Museum in Istanbul, Turkey.
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A cubit arm used in heraldry, showing a right arm, dressed, and standing upright.
See also
In Spanish: Codo (unidad de longitud) para niños
