Length
- ell
- The ell (Latin: ulna) was the basic unit of length, equal to 37 inches. The "Barony ell" of 42 inches was used as the basis for land measurement in the Four Towns area near Lochmaben, Dumfriesshire.
- Scottish inch
- As in England. A fraudulent smaller inch of 1⁄42 of an ell is also recorded.
- foot
- 12 inches.
- yard
- 36 inches. Rarely used except with English units, although it appears in an Act of Parliament from 1432: "The king's officer, as is foresaid, shall have a horn, and each one a red wand of three-quarters of a yard at least."
- fall
- 6 ells, or 222 inches. Identical to the Scots rod and raip ("rope").
- Scots mile
- 320 falls (1973⅓ yards), but varied from place to place. Obsolete by the 19th century. The Royal Mile in Edinburgh is longer than an English mile (1760 yards) but roughly the length of a Scots mile.
Read more about this topic: Obsolete Scottish Units Of Measurement
Famous quotes containing the word length:
“Rivers must have been the guides which conducted the footsteps of the first travelers. They are the constant lure, when they flow by our doors, to distant enterprise and adventure; and, by a natural impulse, the dwellers on their banks will at length accompany their currents to the lowlands of the globe, or explore at their invitation the interior of continents.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Your length in clay’s now competent,
A long war disturbed your mind;”
—John Webster (c. 1580–1638)
“The value of life lies not in the length of days but in the use you make of them; he has lived for a long time who has little lived.”
—Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)