Cubit facts for kids
Cubit is the name for any one of many units of measure used by various ancient peoples and is among the first recorded units of length.
The cubit is based on measuring by comparing – especially rope and textiles, but also for timber and stone – to one's forearm length. The Egyptian hieroglyph for the unit shows this symbol. It was used through antiquity, the Middle Ages up to early modern times.
The distance between thumb and another finger to the elbow on an average person is about 24 digits or 6 palms or 1½ feet (45.72 cm or 18 inches). This so-called "natural cubit" of 1½ feet is used in the Roman system of measures and in different Greek systems.
Over time, units similar in type to the cubit have measured:
- 6 palms = 24 digits, i.e. ~45.0 cm or 18 inches (1.50 ft)
- 7 palms = 28 digits, i.e. ~52.5 cm or 21 inches (1.75 ft)
- 8 palms = 32 digits, i.e. ~60.0 cm or 24 inches (2.00 ft)
- 9 palms = 36 digits, i.e. ~67.5 cm or 27 inches (2.25 ft)
From late antiquity, the Roman ulna, a four-feet-cubit (about 120 cm) is also known. This is the measure from a man's hip to the fingers of the outstretched opposite arm.
The English yard has a long legal history, but its origin is not known. The English ell is essentially a kind of great cubit of 15 palms, 114 cm, or 45 inches (3.75 ft).
Related pages
Images for kids
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Egyptian cubit rod in the Liverpool World Museum
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Cubit rod of Maya, 1336–1327 BC (Eighteenth Dynasty)
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Cubit rod from the Turin Museum
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The Nippur cubit-rod in the Archeological Museum of Istanbul, Turkey
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A heraldic cubit arm, dexter, vested and erect
See also
In Spanish: Codo (unidad de longitud) para niños
