Polish units of measurement
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The traditional Polish units of measurement included two uniform yet distinct systems of
The traditional Polish systems of weights and measures were later replaced with those of surrounding nations (due to the Partitions of Poland), only to be replaced with metric system by the end of the 19th century (between 1872 and 1876).
History
Historic weights and measures
The first recorded weights and measures used in Poland were related to dimensions of human body, hence the most basic measures in use were sążeń (
From Middle Ages until the 18th century, there was no single system of measurement used in all of Poland. Traditional units like stopa (
To add to the confusion, various goods were traditionally measured with different units, often incompatible or difficult to convert. For instance, beer was sold in units named achtel (0.5 of barrel, that is 62 Kraków gallons of 2.75 litres each). However honey and mead were recorded for tax purposes in units named rączka (slightly more than 10 Kraków gallons).
As the weights and measures were important in everyday life of merchants, in 1420 the royal decree allowed each voivode to create and maintain a single system used in his voivodeship. This law was later confirmed by a Sejm act of 1565. Steel or copper rods used as local standard of ell (basic unit of length) were created in a voivode's capital and then dispatched to all nearby towns, where they were further duplicated for everyday use. One bar was to be stored in the town hall for comparison, while additional rods were stored in the gatehouses or toll points to be borrowed by merchants as needed. Damaging or losing a rod was punishable by law.
Measuring time
Outside of this set of systems was the measurement of time. As clock towers only started to appear in late Middle Ages, and their usability was limited to within a small radius, some basic substitutes for modern minutes and hours were developed, based on Christian prayers. The pacierz (or paternoster) was a non-standard unit of time comprising some 25 seconds, that is enough time to recite the Lord's Prayer. Similarly, zdrowaśka (from Zdrowaś Mario, the first words of the Hail Mary) was used, as was the Rosary (różaniec) that is the time needed to recite Hail Mary 50 times (roughly 16 minutes). Those units were never strictly defined, but is used in rural areas of Poland even today.
Early attempts at standardisation
While this system introduced some level of standardisation throughout the country, the systems used in various voivodeships still differed from one another. To counter this problem the
. The standardisation of other units of measurement also made some progress since the 15th century, but at a different pace. In the end this created even more confusion, as two towns could use the same units of length, but two different units of weight, although using the same terms.1764 reform - the Old Polish system
As until then not only different units varied from town to town but also their relation to one another, in 1764 a major overhaul of the measurement system was prepared. By a royal decree of December 6, 1764 all units of measurement were to be converted to a new system, common to all of Poland and its dependencies. The system relied on previously used units, but introduced a common, unified system of relations between them. It had no official name and it was not until the 19th century when it started to be called the Old Polish system (miary staropolskie, or Old-Polish measures), in contrast to the new system introduced then.
The basic unit of length - the
1 ell = 2 feet = 3 sztychs = 4 quarters = 8 palms = 24 inches ( = ⅓ of a fathom ).
A different system of units, although complementary and interchangeable, was used in measuring lengths for agrarian purposes. The basic unit was a step (krok), equalling 3.75 of standard ell, or 2.2333 metres. Two steps made a rod (pręt, 4.4665 metres), 2 rods made a stick (laska), and five sticks were equal to a cable (sznur of 44.665 metres). Finally 3 cables made up a furlong
In measuring the distance between cities, the basic unit was staje, although it was different from the staje mentioned before and had the length of roughly 893 metres. Eight staje made up a Polish mile of 7144 metres.
The weights were based on the Polish pound (funt of 0.4052
There were two sets of units of volume: one for fluids and the other for dry goods. Both used the gallon (garniec) of 3.7689 litres as the basic unit. This was subdivided into 4 quarts (kwarta) of 0.9422 L or 16 kwarterka. For dry goods four gallons comprised a measure (miarka), 2 measures comprised a quarter (ćwierć), 4 quarters comprised a bushel (korzec) of 120.6 L, and 30 bushels comprised a last (łaszt) of 3618 L. For fluids, 5 gallons comprised a konew of 18.8445 L and 14.4 konew made up a barrel of 271.36 L.
Current use
Though the traditional systems were officially abandoned in the 19th century, traces of their use, especially in rural areas, were found by
Length
- Krok (pl:Krok (miara))
- Ławka (pl:Ławka (jednostka długości))
- Łokieć (pl:Łokieć (miara))
- Piędź (pl:Piędź)
- Staje (pl:Staje)
- Stopa (pl:Stopa (miara))
Area
Włóka | Morga | Sznur | Pręt | Kopanka | Łokieć | hectares |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 30 | 90 | 900 | 9000 | 506250 | 17.9549 |
1 | 3 | 30 | 300 | 16875 | 0.5985 | |
1 | 10 | 100 | 5625 | 0.1995 | ||
1 | 10 | 562.50 | 0.01995 | |||
1 | 56.25 | 0.001995 |
Volume
- Garniec (pl:Garniec)
- Korzec (pl:Korzec)
- Łaszt (pl:Łaszt)
Mass and monetary units
- Grzywna (pl:Grzywna (ekonomia); pl:Grzywna (jednostka miar))
- Kamień (pl:Kamień (miara))
- Kwarta (pl:Kwarta (jednostka wagowa))
- Kwartnik (pl:Kwartnik)
- Łut (pl:Łut)
- Skojec (pl:Skojec)
- Wiardunek (pl:Wiardunek)
Time
References
- ISBN 1-85233-682-X.
- ^ Stanisław Kunikowski (1987). Miary na ziemiach polskich; wystawa ze zbiorów Muzeum Ziemi Kujawskiej i Dobrzyńskiej we Włocławku (in Polish). Szreniawa: Muzeum Narodowe Rolnictwa i Przemysłu Rolno-Spożywczego.