Obsolete Russian Units of Measurement - Length

Length

The basic unit is the Russian cubit, called arshin, which has been in use since the 16th century. It was standardized by Peter the Great in the 18th century to measure exactly twenty-eight English inches (71.1 cm). Thus, 80 vershoks = 20 piads = 5 arshins = 140 English inches.

A piad (пядь, “palm”, “five”) or chetvert (че́тверть, “quarter”) is a hand span, the distance between ends of the spread thumb and index finger.

Unit Russian Translation Ratio Metric
Value
English units
tochka то́чка point 1/2800 0.254 mm 1/100 inch
liniya ли́ния line 1/280 2.54 mm 1/10 inch; cf. line
diuym дюйм inch 1/28 2.54 cm 1 inch
vershok вершо́к “tip” or “top” 1/16 4.445 cm 1 ¾ in; cf. 19" rack unit
piad, chetvert пядь, че́тверть “palm”, quarter 1/4 17.78 cm 7 in; cf. span
fut фут foot 3/7 30.48 cm 1 ft
arshin арши́н yard 1 71.12 cm 2 ⅓ ft
sazhen са́жень fathom 3 2.1336 m 7 ft
versta верста́ turn (of a plough) 1500 1.0668 km 3,500 ft
milia ми́ля mile 10,500 7.4676 km 24,500 ft

Alternative units:

  • Swung sazhen (маховая сажень, makhovaya sazhen’, distance between tips of arms stretched sidewards) = 1.76 m
  • Skewed, or oblique sazhen (косая сажень, kosaya sazhen’, distance between tip of a raised arm and a tip of an opposite leg slightly put away) = 2.48 m
  • Double versta or border versta, (межевая верста, mezhevaya versta), used to measure land plots and distances between settlements = 2 verstas (comes from an older standard for versta)

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