Approximate measures

Approximate measures are units of volumetric measurement which are not defined by a government or government-sanctioned organization, or which were previously defined and are now repealed, yet which remain in use.

It may be that all English-unit derived capacity measurements are derived from one original approximate measurement: the mouthful, consisting of about 1⁄2 ounce, called the ro in ancient Egypt (their smallest recognized unit of capacity). The mouthful was still a unit of liquid measure during Elizabethan times. (The principal Egyptian standards from small to large were the ro, hin, hekat, and khar.)

Because of the lack of official definitions, many of these units will not have a consistent value.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.