Eorzean Units of Measurement

[Anonymoose]

We went over the ones you know long ago, but it's worth putting them in the lore forum. We'll start with that. Known volumes are hard to guess at and don't seem to have been mentioned much (if at all)

1 Ilm (Im) = 2.54 cm
1 Fulm (Fm) = 12 Ilm = 30.48 cm
1 Yalm (Ym) = 3 Fulm = 0.9144 meters
1 Malm (Mm) = 1,760 Yalm = 1,609 meters

1 Onze (Oz) = 28.35 grams
1 Ponze (Pz) = 16 Onzs = 453.6 grams
1 Tonze (Tz) = 2,000 Ponzs = 907.2 grams

Rule of thumb is to just use the USA's system. Why? Because to almost any other country, it will fit right in with a fantasy atmosphere. It'll be completely foreign to them. Why? Because the US is one of only three countries (others being Liberia and Myanmar) that have not converted to the metric system.

(Uncle) Sam, I am disappoint.

Anyway, Volume.

I reckon there ain't one in a dozen with an onze o' truth behind 'em.

If those engineers could pursue their passions without heed to the costs of rare materials and the price of a pint of ceruleum.

Onze (?)
------
Pint
------
------

Gill, Quart, Gallon?

EDIT:
HAPPY 1500 POSTS, ANONYMOOSE!

[ArkhamNative]

the US is one of only three countries (others being Liberia and Myanmar) that have not converted to the metric system.

Hey, in the US we're very proud of our ignorance! We also enjoy lower life expectancy and lower quality of health care despite paying almost twice per capita of any other industrialized country. Woo! World leaders! USA! USA!


P.S. Thx for the lore info.

[Yrusama]

Hey, in the US we're very proud of our ignorance! We also enjoy lower life expectancy and lower quality of health care despite paying almost twice per capita of any other industrialized country. Woo! World leaders! USA! USA!


P.S. Thx for the lore info.

I wouldn't say we haven't converted at all. A lot of things use metric, but culturally it's been too hard to switch over. I remember learning metric in like... fourth grade at the latest. We just have very stubborn old people. >:P

I remember seeing the distance measurement terms in XI, particularly Malm and Yalm. I'm not sure if they started to see use AFTER XIV's development (which took them 5 years, didn't it?) but I do know that I've seen them in XI for a looong time.

[Myranda]

Because the US is one of only three countries (others being Liberia and Myanmar) that have not converted to the metric system.

Anyway, Volume.

Onze (?)
------
Pint
------
------

Gill, Quart, Gallon?

1. Can you really say the UK has totally switched over? Crazy brits buy fuel by the liter, but then drive in miles and calculate efficiency by miles per gallon.

b. Why are you including onze in volume? We've already determined and it makes sense in the context of that sentence as a unit of weight (i.e. an ounce)... we do have "fluid ounces" in the real world, but nothing in that sentence makes me think that's what's being referenced.

γ. Given the parallels in time period, maybe we ought to include apothecary units as well for the alchemists and get our drams and scruples on!

[edit:]Just after writing this I remembered the ol' FFXI Finsternis and Prufrock flash animations where they bake cookies and need one tbsp of Selbina butter.... good times lol

[Anonymoose]

Can you really say the UK has totally switched over? Crazy brits buy fuel by the liter, but then drive in miles and calculate efficiency by miles per gallon.

I actually did not know this! Based on my personal experiences with the English (Read: Movies), I'd assumed they were all about them there kill-o-meters.

Why are you including onze in volume?

γ. Given the parallels in time period, maybe we ought to include apothecary units as well for the alchemists and get our drams and scruples on!

Same hierarchy as pints in that system, equal to the volume of liquid contained in one ounce, which was different for everything. They had a ton of different ounces, but most of them said ounce somewhere in it so I figured it was a somewhat safe assumption considering pints - hence the question mark.

As for why I didn't automatically jump to scruples and drams, the weight and distance didn't use archaic imperial terms such as chain and furlong, so I figured it statistically more likely that they'd stick with the modern familiars. Aside from pints, it's all assumption - but guessing which is more likely (ounce, pint, quart, gallon v. minim, scruple, dram, ounce, pint, gallon) my bet's on SE going with the former based on contextual evidence.

[Mjollnir]

I actually did not know this! Based on my personal experiences with the English (Read: Movies), I'd assumed they were all about them there kill-o-meters.

Well all our road signs are in miles, unless they're temporary roadworks signs, in which case it's metres. We measure our height in feet and weight in stone, unless you're in a gym. Home cooking is measured in lbs and oz, but pre-packaged food and nutrition info is in kg/g. Pharmaceutical drugs and chemical recreational drugs in grams, but more natural recreational drugs in lbs. Odometers and tape measures have both metric and imperial. Celsius rather than Fahrenheit (though that's probably something different).

Best of both worlds? Confusing as hell? Yeah...

[ArkhamNative]

1. Can you really say the UK has totally switched over? Crazy brits buy fuel by the liter, but then drive in miles and calculate efficiency by miles per gallon.

Not totally, but they're nearly there, and making progress. Food labeling is solely in metric. Any recipes published in the last 10? years. Oven temperatures and weather temps, too. Most recently was a law change forbidding butchers from selling things in lbs, caused a pretty big outcry, but it happened. The miles & miles per hour are the last on the list, apparently. EU countries (er, those that switched to Euros ) are all metric.

In its defense, the US military and of course US scientists are all metric. (Military is even date format DD/MM/YYYY.)

[Mjollnir]

Most recently was a law change forbidding butchers from selling things in lbs, caused a pretty big outcry, but it happened.

fyi, that didn't cause a pretty big outcry because it never happened.

Dates and temperatures aren't imperial/metric. They're just different localisations.

[ArkhamNative]

fyi, that didn't cause a pretty big outcry because it never happened.
Dates and temperatures aren't imperial/metric. They're just different localisations.

Well it was all over the (UK) news at the time, and I personally witnessed butchers and customers making jokes and gripes about it.
OK, maybe Celsius is only SI. Regardless, the US's continued use of Fahrenheit is contrary to the rest of the world and international standards, as is its use of MM/DD/YYYY. (Perhaps that date issue is more of a pet peeve of mine than anything.)

[Mjollnir]

Well it was all over the (UK) news at the time, and I personally witnessed butchers and customers making jokes and gripes about it.

Weird. I'd not ever heard of it so I Googled and couldn't find anything either. Sounds like it might have been typical tabloid misinformation - I actively avoid that style of 'news'!

OK, maybe Celsius is only SI. Regardless, the US's continued use of Fahrenheit is contrary to the rest of the world and international standards, as is its use of MM/DD/YYYY. (Perhaps that date issue is more of a pet peeve of mine than anything.)

It defies logic! I wouldn't care except the US makes so much software that I use and then defaults to that layout, it peeves me too lol The spelling thing, I can deal with, but that date format? Why???