Beforemetrication, the traditional system of measurement used inThailand employedanthropic units. Some of these units are still in use, albeit standardised to SI/metric measurements. When theRoyal Thai Survey Department begancadastral survey in 1896, Director R. W. Giblin,F.R.G.S., noted, "It so happens that 40 metres or 4,000 centimetres are equal to onesen," so all cadastral plans are plotted, drawn, and printed to a scale of 1:4,000.[1] The squarewa,ngan andrai are still used in measurements of land area.
Thebaht is still used as a unit of measurement in gold trading. However, onebaht of 96.5% gold bullion is defined as 15.16 grams rather than the generic standard of 15 grams. Thebaht has also become the name of thecurrency of Thailand, which was originally fixed to the corresponding mass of silver.
| Unit | Thai script | IPA pronunciation | Meaning equivalent | Relative equivalent | Metric equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Length | |||||
| Krabiat | กระเบียด | [krā.bìat] | Quarter of a finger | 0.5208 cm | |
| Nio | นิ้ว | [níw] | Siamese inch[2] Cf.Digit (unit) finger (unit) | 4krabiat[3] | 2.083 cm |
| Khuep | คืบ | [kʰɯ̂ːp] | Span | 12nio[3] | 25 cm |
| Sok | ศอก | [sɔ̀ːk] | Cubit | 2khuep[3] | 50 cm |
| Wa | วา | [wāː] | Fathom (outstretched arms) | 4sok[3] | 2 m |
| Sen | เส้น | [sên] | Cf.Rope (unit) line of rope[1] Chain (unit) | 20wa[3] | 40 m |
| Yot | โยชน์ | [jôːt] | Yojana | 400sen[3] | 16 km |
| Area | |||||
| Tarang wa | ตารางวา | [tāː.rāːŋwāː] | Squarewa | 4 m2 | |
| Ngan | งาน | [ŋāːn] | Work | 100tarang wa | 400 m2 |
| Rai | ไร่ | [râj] | Plantation | 4ngan 1 Squaresen | 1,600 m2 (16 a) |
| Volume | |||||
| Yip mue | หยิบมือ | [jìpmɯ̄ː] | Pinch | 7.8125 mL | |
| Kam mue | กำมือ | [kāmmɯ̄ː] | Grain held in an enclosed hand | 4yip mue[3] | 31.25 mL |
| Fai mue | ฟายมือ | [fāːjmɯ̄ː] | Grain held in the palm | 4kam mue[3] | 125 mL |
| Thanan | ทะนาน | [tʰā.nāːn] | Coconut shell used for measuring | 8fai mue[3] | 1 L |
| Thang | ถัง | [tʰǎŋ] | Bucket | 20thanan[3] | 20 L |
| Sat | สัด | [sàt] | Measuring basket | 25thanan[3] | 25 L |
| Kwian | เกวียน | [kwīan] | Cartload | 100thang[3] | 2 m3 |
| Weight/mass | |||||
| Salueng | สลึง | [sā.lɯ̌ŋ] | 3.75 g | ||
| Baht or Bat | บาท | [bàːt] | Tical | 4salueng[3] | 15 g |
| Tamlueng | ตำลึง | [tām.lɯ̄ŋ] | Tael | 4baht[3] | 60 g |
| Chang | ชั่ง | [t͡ɕʰâŋ] | Catty | 20tamlueng[3] | 1,200 g |
| Hap | หาบ | [hàːp] | Picul | 50chang[3] | 60 kg |
All cadastral plans are plotted, drawn, and printed to a scale of 1 to 4,000....
...said fathom being computed to contain 78 English or American inches, corresponding to 96 Siamese inches....
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)