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Some Japanese Measures

It should be noted that the idea of these units being standardised is probably only somewhat true.

Often I am asked why some of us still use old imperial or old Japanese weights and measures.  In some ways information is often recorded or given in these so it is a matter of relaying that information - the real usefulness of some of these things is that they relate directly to people and so are naturally useful measurements - they are ergonomic.  The metre is currently defined as the distance traveled by light in a vacuum in1/299,792,458 seconds - not particularly relevant to a human… with the exception of engineers of course.

Bu 分 - 3.03mm

Sun 寸 - 3.03cm (10 Bu)

Shaku 尺 - 30.3cm (10 sun)

Ken 間 - 1.818 metres (6 shaku)

Jo 丈 - 3.03 metres (10 shaku)

Cho 町 - 109.1 metres (360 shaku)

Ri 里 - approx. 3.927km (12,960 shaku)

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