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Mile

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Several terms redirect here. For other uses, seeScandinavian mile,nautical mile,Mile (disambiguation),andMiles (disambiguation).

mile
Amilestonein theCity of Westminstershowing the distance from Kensington Road toHounslowandHyde Park Cornerin miles
General information
Unit systemBritish imperial/US customary
Unit oflength
Symbolmi. or mi, (rarely)m
Conversions
1 mi. or miin...... is equal to...
SI units1609.344m
imperial/USunits
US survey mile0.999998survey mile
nautical units0.86898nmi

Themile,sometimes theinternational mileorstatute mileto distinguish it from other miles, is aBritish imperial unitandUnited States customary unitof distance; both are based on the olderEnglish unitoflengthequal to 5,280English feet,or 1,760yards.The statute mile was standardised between theCommonwealth of Nationsand the United States by aninternational agreement in 1959,when it was formally redefined with respect toSI unitsas exactly1,609.344metres.

With qualifiers,mileis also used to describe or translate a wide range of units derived from or roughly equivalent to theRoman mile(roughly1.48 km), such as thenautical mile(now1.852 kmexactly), theItalian mile(roughly1.852 km), and theChinese mile(now500 mexactly). The Romans divided their mile into 5,000pedēs ( "feet" ),but the greater importance of furlongs in theElizabethan-era Englandmeant that thestatute milewas made equivalent to8furlongsor5,280feetin 1593. This form of the mile then spread across theBritish Empire,some successor states of which continue to employ the mile. TheUS Geological Surveynow employs the metre for official purposes, but legacy data from its1927 geodetic datumhas meant that a separateUS survey mile(6336/3937km)continues to see some use, although it was officially phased out in 2022. While most countries replaced the mile with the kilometre when switching to theInternational System of Units(SI), the international mile continues to be used in some countries, such as Liberia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and a number of countries with fewer than one million inhabitants, most of which are UK or US territories or have close historical ties with the UK or US.

Name[edit]

Themodern Englishwordmilederives fromMiddle EnglishmyleandOld Englishmīl,which wascognatewith all otherGermanicterms formiles.These derived from thenominal ellipsisform ofmīlle passus'mile' ormīlia passuum'miles', the Roman mile of one thousandpaces.[1]

The presentinternational mileis usually what is understood by the unqualified termmile.When this distance needs to be distinguished from the nautical mile, the international mile may also be described as a land mile or statute mile.[2]InBritish English,statute milemay refer to the present international mile or to any other form ofEnglish milesince the1593 Act of Parliament,which set it as a distance of1,760 yards.UnderAmerican law,however,statute milerefers to the US survey mile.[3]Foreign and historical units translated into English asmilesusually employ a qualifier to describe the kind of mile being used but this may be omitted if it is obvious from the context, such as a discussion of the 2nd-centuryAntonine Itinerarydescribing its distances in terms ofmilesrather thanRoman miles.

Abbreviation[edit]

The mile has been variously abbreviated in English—with and without a trailing period—as "mi", "M", "ml", and "m".[4]The AmericanNational Institute of Standards and Technologynow uses and recommends "mi" to avoid confusion with the SI metre (m) and millilitre (ml).[5]However, derived units such asmiles per hourormiles per galloncontinue to be abbreviated as "mph" and "mpg" rather than "mi/h" and "mi/gal". In the United Kingdom,road signsuse "m" as the abbreviation for mile though height and width restrictions also use "m" as the symbol for the metre, which may be displayed alongside feet and inches.[6]TheBBCstyle holds that "there is no acceptable abbreviation for 'miles'"and so it should be spelled out when used in describing areas.[7]

Historical[edit]

The supposed remains of theGolden Milestone,thezero-mile markerof theRoman road network,in theRoman Forum

Roman[edit]

TheRomanmile(mille passus,lit."thousand paces";abbr.m.p.;alsomilia passuum[n 1]andmille) consisted of a thousandpacesas measured by every other step—as in the total distance of the left foot hitting the ground 1,000 times.[9]WhenRoman legionarieswere well-fed and harshly driven in good weather, they thus created longer miles. The distance was indirectly standardised byAgrippa's establishment of a standardRoman foot(Agrippa's own) in 29BC,[10]and the definition of a pace as 5 feet. An Imperial Roman mile thus denoted 5,000Roman feet.Surveyorsand specialised equipment such as thedecempedaanddioptrathen spread its use.[11]

In modern times, Agrippa's Imperial Roman mile was empirically estimated to have been about 1,618 yards (1,479 m; 4,854 ft; 0.919 mi) in length, slightly less than the 1,760 yards (1,609 m; 5,280 ft) of the modern international mile.[12]

InHellenic areasof the Empire, the Roman mile (Greek:μίλιον,mílion) was used beside the nativeGreek unitsas equivalent to 8stadiaof 600Greek feet.Themílioncontinued to be used as aByzantine unitand was also used as the name of thezero mile markerfor theByzantine Empire,theMilion,located at the head of theMesenearHagia Sophia.

The Roman mile spread throughout Europe, with its local variations giving rise to the different units.[citation needed]Also arising from the Roman mile is themilestone.All roads radiated out from theRoman Forumthroughout the Empire – 50,000 (Roman) miles of stone-paved roads. At every mile was placed a shaped stone. Originally, these wereobelisksmade from granite, marble, or whatever local stone was available. On these was carved aRoman numeral,indicating the number of miles from the centre of Rome – the Forum. Hence, one can know how far one is from Rome.[13]

Italian[edit]

TheItalianmile(miglio,pl.miglia) was traditionally considered a direct continuation of the Roman mile, equal to 1000 paces,[14]althoughits actual value over time or between regionscould vary greatly.[15]It was often used in international contexts from the Middle Ages into the 17th century[14]and is thus also known as the "geographical mile",[16]although thegeographical mileis now a separate standard unit.

Arabic[edit]

Main article:Arabic mile

TheArabic mile(الميل,al-mīl) was not the commonArabic unitoflength;instead,ArabsandPersianstraditionally used the longerparasangor "Arabicleague".The Arabic mile was, however, used bymedieval geographersand scientists and constituted a kind of precursor to thenauticalorgeographical mile.It extended the Roman mile to fit anastronomicalapproximation of 1arcminuteoflatitudemeasured directly north-and-south along ameridian.Although the precise value of the approximation remains disputed, it was somewhere between 1.8 and 2.0 km.

English[edit]

See also:yard

The "oldEnglishmile"of themedievalandearly modern periodsvaried but seems to have measured about 1.3international miles(2.1 km).[17][18]The old English mile varied over time and location within England.[18]The old English mile has also been defined as 79,200 or 79,320 inches (1.25 or 1.2519 statute miles).[19]The English long continued the Roman computations of the mile as 5000 feet, 1000paces,or 8 longer divisions, which they equated with their "furrow's length "orfurlong.[20]

The origins of English units are "extremely vague and uncertain",[21][citation needed]but seem to have been a combination of theRoman systemwith nativeBritishand Germanic systems both derived from multiples of thebarleycorn.[n 2]Probably by the reign ofEdgarin the 10th century, the nominalprototypephysical standardof English length was an arm-length iron bar (a yardstick) held by thekingatWinchester;[22][21]the foot was then one-third of its length.Henry Iwas said to have made a new standard in 1101 based on his own arm.[21]Following the issuance ofMagna Cartain 1215, thebaronsofParliamentdirectedJohnand his son to keep theking's standard measure (Mensura Domini Regis) andweightat theExchequer,[21]which thereafter verified local standards until its abolition in the 19th century. Newbrassstandards are known to have been constructed underHenry VIIandElizabeth I.[24]

Arnold'sc. 1500Customs of Londonrecorded a mile shorter than previous ones, coming to 0.947 international miles (5000 feet) or 1.524 km.[20]

Statute[edit]

"Statute mile" redirects here. For the current statute mile in the United Kingdom, see§ International.For the statute mile in the United States, see§ US survey.

The Englishstatute milewas established by aWeights and MeasuresAct of Parliamentin 1593 during the reign ofQueen Elizabeth I.The act on theComposition of Yards and Percheshad shortened the length of the foot and its associated measures, causing the two methods of determining the mile to diverge.[25]Owing to the importance of the surveyor'srodin deeds andsurveyingundertaken underHenry VIII,[26]decreasing the length of the rod by1⁄11would have amounted to a significanttaxincrease. Parliament instead opted to maintain the mile of 8furlongs(which were derived from the rod) and to increase the number of feet per mile from the old Roman value.[27]The applicable passage of the statute reads: "A Mile shall contain eight Furlongs, every Furlong forty Poles,[n 3]and every Pole shall contain sixteen Foot and an half. "[29]The statute mile therefore contained 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards.[20]The distance was not uniformly adopted.Robert Mordenhad multiple scales on his 17th-century maps which included continuing local values: his map ofHampshire,for example, bore two different "miles" with a ratio of1 : 1.23[30]and his map ofDorsethad three scales with a ratio of1 : 1.23 : 1.41.[31]In both cases, the traditional local units remained longer than the statute mile. The English statute mile was superseded in 1959 by theinternational mileby international agreement.

Welsh[edit]

TheWelshmile(milltirormilldir) was 3 statute miles and 1,470 yards long (6.17 km). It comprised 9,000paces(cam), each of 3Welsh feet(troedfedd) of 9 inches (modfeddi).[32](The Welsh inch is usually reckoned as equivalent to the English inch.) Along with otherWelsh units,it was said to have beencodifiedunderDyfnwal the Bald and Silentandretained unchangedbyHywel the Good.[33]Along with other Welsh units, it was discontinued following theconquestofWalesbyEdward I of Englandin the 13th century.

Scots[edit]

Edinburgh's "Royal Mile"—running fromthe castletoHolyrood Abbey—is roughly a Scots mile long.[34]

TheScotsmilewas longer than the English mile,[35]as mentioned byRobert Burnsin the first verse of his poem "Tam o' Shanter".It comprised 8 (Scots) furlongs divided into 320fallsor faws (Scotsrods).[36]It varied from place to place but the most accepted equivalencies are 1,976Imperialyards (1.123statute milesor 1.81 km). It was legally abolished three times: first by a 1685 act of theScottish Parliament,[37]again by the 1707Treaty of Unionwith England,[38]and finally by theWeights and Measures Act 1824.[35]It had continued in use as a customary unit through the 18th century but had become obsolete by its final abolition.

Irish[edit]

Main article:Irish mile
Milestone onMountbellewBridge, erectedc. 1760.Distances are given in Irish miles.

TheIrish mile(míleormíle Gaelach) measured 2,240 yards: approximately 1.27 statute miles or 2.048 kilometres.[39][40]It was used in Ireland from the16th century plantationsuntil the 19th century, with residual use into the 20th century. The units were based on "English measure"but used alinear perchmeasuring 7 yards (6.4 m) as opposed to the Englishrodof 5.5 yards (5.0 m).[40]

Dutch[edit]

Scalebar on a Mercator map
Scalebar on a 16th-century map made byMercator.The scalebar is expressed in "Hours walking or common Flemish miles", and includes three actual scales: small, medium and big Flemish miles.

TheDutch mile(mijl) has had different definitions throughout history. One of the older definitions was 5,600ells.But the length of an ell was not standardised, so that the length of a mile could range between 3,280 m and 4,280 m. In the sixteenth, the Dutch had three different miles: small (kleine), medium (middelbaar/gemeen), and large (groote). The Dutchkleinemile had the historical definition of one hour's walking (uur gaans), which was defined as 24 stadia, 3000 paces, or 15,000 Amsterdam or Rhineland feet (respectively 4,250 m or 4,710 m). The common Dutch mile was 32 stadia, 4,000 paces, or 20,000 feet (5,660 m or 6,280 m). The large mile was defined as 5000 paces.[41]The common Dutch mile was preferred by mariners, equating with 15 to one degree oflatitudeor one degree oflongitudeon theequator.This was originally based uponPtolemy's underestimate of the Earth's circumference. The ratio of 15 Dutch miles to a degree remained fixed while the length of the mile was changed as with improved calculations of the circumference of the Earth. In 1617,Willebrord Snelliuscalculated a degree of the circumference of the Earth at 28,500Rijnlantsche Roeden(within 3.5% of the actual value), which resulted in a Dutch mile of 1900 rods.[42]By the mid-seventeenth century, map scales assigned 2000 rods to the common Dutch mile, which equalled around 7,535 m (reducing the discrepancy with latitude measurement to less than 2%). The metric system was introduced in the Netherlands in 1816, and the metric mile became a synonym for the kilometre, being exactly 1,000 m. Since 1870, the termmijlwas replaced by the equivalentkilometer.Today, the wordmijlis no longer used, except as part of certain proverbs andcompoundterms likemijlenver( "miles away" ).

German[edit]

Various historic miles and leagues from an 1848 German textbook, given in feet, metres, and fractions of a "degree of meridian"

TheGerman mile(Meile) was 24,000 German feet. The standardisedAustrian mileused in southern Germany and theAustrian Empirewas 7.586 km; thePrussian mileused in northern Germany was 7.5325 km. Following its standardisation byOle Rømerin the late 17th century, theDanish mile(mil) was precisely equal to the Prussian mile and likewise divided into 24,000 feet.[43]These were sometimes treated as equivalent to 7.5 km. Earlier values had varied: theSjællandske miil,for instance, had been 11.13 km. The Germans also used a longer version of thegeographical mile.

Breslau[edit]

TheBreslau mile,used inBreslau,and from 1630 officially in all ofSilesia,equal to 11,250ells,or about 6,700 meters. The mile equaled the distance from the Piaskowa Gate all the way to Psie Pole (Hundsfeld). By rolling a circle with a radius of 5 ells throughPiaskowa Island,Ostrów Tumskiand suburban tracts, passing eight bridges on the way, the standard Breslau mile was determined.[44][45]

Saxon[edit]

TheSaxon post mile(kursächsische PostmeileorPolizeimeile,introduced on occasion of a survey of the Saxon roads in the 1700s, corresponded to 2,000 Dresdenrods,equivalent to 9.062 kilometres.[46]

Hungarian[edit]

TheHungarian mile(mérföldormagyar mérföld) varied from 8.3790 km to 8.9374 km before being standardised as 8.3536 km.

Portuguese[edit]

ThePortuguese mile(milha) used in Portugal and Brazil was 2.0873 km prior to metrication.[47]

Russian[edit]

TheRussianmile(миляorрусская миля,russkaya milya) was 7.468 km, divided into 7versts.

Croatian[edit]

TheCroatian mile(hrvatska milja), first devised by theJesuitStjepan Glavačon a 1673 map, is the length of an arc of the equator subtended by1/10° or 11.13 km exactly.[48][49]The previous Croatian mile, now known as the "banmile "(banska milja), had been the Austrian mile given above.[50]

Ottoman[edit]

TheOttoman milewas 1,894.35 m (1.17709 mi), which was equal to 5,000 Ottoman foot. After 1933, the Ottoman mile was replaced with the modern Turkish mile (1,853.181 m).

Japanese[edit]

TheCJK CompatibilityUnicode blockcontains square-format versions of Japanese names for measurement units as written inkatakanascript. Among them, there isU+3344㍄SQUARE MAIRU,afterマイルmairu.

International[edit]

Theinternational mileis precisely equal to1.609344km(or25146/15625km as a fraction).[52]It was established as part of the 1959international yard and poundagreement reached by the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and theUnion of South Africa,[53]which resolved small but measurable differences that had arisen from separate physical standards each country had maintained for the yard.[54]As with the earlierstatute mile,it continues to comprise 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet.

The old Imperial value of the yard was used in converting measurements to metric values in India in a 1976 Act of the Indian Parliament.[55]However, the current National Topographic Database of theSurvey of Indiais based on the metricWGS-84datum,[56]which is also used by theGlobal Positioning System.

The difference from the previous standards was 2ppm,or about 3.2 millimetres (1⁄8inch) per mile. The US standard was slightly longer and the old Imperial standards had been slightly shorter than the international mile. When the international mile was introduced in English-speaking countries, the basicgeodetic datumin America was theNorth American Datumof 1927 (NAD27). This had been constructed bytriangulationbased on the definition of the foot in theMendenhall Orderof 1893, with 1 foot =1200/3937(≈0.304800609601) metres and the definition was retained for data derived from NAD27, but renamed theUS survey footto distinguish it from the international foot.[57][n 4]Thus a survey mile =1200/3937× 5280 (≈1609.347218694) metres. An international mile = 1609.344 / (1200/3937× 5280) (=0.999998) survey miles.

The exact length of the land mile varied slightly among English-speaking countries until theinternational yard and poundagreement in 1959 established the yard as exactly 0.9144 metres, giving a mile of exactly 1,609.344 metres. The US adopted this international mile for most purposes, but retained the pre-1959 mile for some land-survey data, terming it theU. S. survey mile.In the United States,statute milenormally refers to the survey mile,[58]about 3.219 mm (1⁄8inch) longer than the international mile (the international mile is exactly 0.0002% less than the US survey mile).

While most countries abandoned the mile when switching to themetric system,the international mile continues to be used in some countries, such asLiberia,Myanmar,[59]the United Kingdom[60]and the United States.[61]It is also used in a number of territories with less than a million inhabitants, most of which are UK or US territories, or have close historical ties with the UK or US: American Samoa,[62]Bahamas,[63]Belize,[64]British Virgin Islands,[65]Cayman Islands,[66]Dominica,[66]Falkland Islands,[67]Grenada,[68]Guam,[69]The N. Mariana Islands,[70]Samoa,[71]St. Lucia,[72]St. Vincent & The Grenadines,[73]St. Helena,[74]St. Kitts & Nevis,[75]the Turks & Caicos Islands,[76]and the US Virgin Islands.[77] The mile is even encountered in Canada, though this is predominantly in rail transport and horse racing, as the roadways have been metricated since 1977.[78][79][80][81]Ireland gradually replaced miles with kilometres, including in speed measurements; the process was completed in 2005.

US survey[edit]

For the detailed calculations of international miles to survey miles and feet (above), see§ International.

TheUS survey mileis 5,280US survey feet,or 1,609.347 metres and 0.30480061 metres respectively.[82]Both are very slightly longer than theinternational mileandinternational foot.In the United States, the termstatute mileformally refers to the survey mile,[3]but for most purposes, the difference of less than1⁄8inch (3.2 mm) between the survey mile and the international mile (1609.344 metres exactly) is insignificant—one international mile is0.999998US survey miles—sostatute milecan be used for either. But in some cases, such as in the USState Plane Coordinate Systems(SPCSs), which can stretch over hundreds of miles,[83]the accumulated difference can be significant, so it is important to note that the reference is to the US survey mile.

The United States redefined its yard in 1893, and this resulted in US and Imperial measures of distance having very slightly different lengths.

TheNorth American Datumof 1983 (NAD83), which replaced the NAD27, is defined in metres. State Plane Coordinate Systems were then updated, but theNational Geodetic Surveyleft individual states to decide which (if any) definition of the foot they would use. All State Plane Coordinate Systems are defined in metres, and 42 of the 50 states only use the metre-based State Plane Coordinate Systems. However, eight states also have State Plane Coordinate Systems defined in feet, seven of them in US survey feet and one in international feet.[83]

State legislation in the US is important for determining which conversion factor from the metric datum is to be used for land surveying and real estate transactions, even though the difference (2ppm) is hardly significant, given the precision of normal surveying measurements over short distances (usually much less than a mile). Twenty-four states have legislated that surveying measures be based on the US survey foot, eight have legislated that they be based on the international foot, and eighteen have not specified which conversion factor to use.[83]

SPCS 83 legislation refers to state legislation that has been passed or updated using the newer 1983 NAD data. Most states have done so. Two states,AlaskaandMissouri,and two jurisdictions,GuamandPuerto Rico,do not specify which foot to use.[83]Two states,AlabamaandHawaii,and four jurisdictions,Washington, DC,US Virgin Islands,American SamoaandNorthern Mariana Islands,do not have SPCS 83 legislation.[83]

In October 2019,US National Geodetic SurveyandNational Institute of Standards and Technologyannounced their joint intent to retire the US survey foot and US survey mile, as permitted by their 1959 decision, with effect on January 1, 2023.[84][85][86]

Nautical[edit]

On the utility of the nautical mile.
Each circle shown is agreat circle—the analogue of a line in spherical trigonometry—and hence the shortest path connecting two points on the globular surface.Meridiansare great circles that pass through the poles.
Main article:Nautical mile

Thenautical milewas originally defined as oneminute of arcalong ameridianof the Earth.[87]Navigators use dividers to step off the distance between two points on the navigational chart, then place the open dividers against the minutes-of-latitude scale at the edge of the chart, and read off the distance in nautical miles.[88]The Earth is not perfectly spherical but anoblate spheroid,so the length of a minute of latitude increases by 1% from the equator to the poles. Using theWGS84 ellipsoid,the commonly accepted Earth model for many purposes today, one minute of latitude at the WGS84 equator is 6,046 feet and at the poles is 6,107.5 feet. The average is about 6,076 feet (about 1,852 metres or 1.15 statute miles).

In the United States, the nautical mile was defined in the 19th century as 6,080.2 feet (1,853.249 m), whereas in the United Kingdom, theAdmiralty nautical milewas defined as 6,080 feet (1,853.184 m) and was about one minute of latitude in the latitudes of the south of the UK. Other nations had different definitions of the nautical mile, but it is now internationally defined to be exactly 1,852 metres (6,076.11548556 feet).[89]

Related units[edit]

The nautical mile per hour is known as theknot.Nautical miles and knots are almost universally used for aeronautical and maritime navigation, because of their relationship with degrees and minutes of latitude and the convenience of using the latitude scale on a map for distance measuring.

Thedata mileis used inradar-related subjects and is equal to 6,000 feet (1.8288 kilometres).[90]Theradar mileis a unit of time (in the same way that thelight yearis a unit of distance), equal to the time required for a radar pulse to travel a distance of two miles (one mile each way). Thus, the radar statute mile is 10.8 μs and the radar nautical mile is 12.4 μs.[91]

Geographical[edit]

Main article:Geographical mile

Thegeographical mileis based upon the length of ameridianoflatitude.The German geographical mile (geographische Meile) was previously1⁄15° of latitude (7.4127 km).[92]

Grid system[edit]

Cities in the continental United States often have streets laid out by miles.Detroit(e.g.,Eight Mile Road),Indianapolis,Chicago,Phoenix,Philadelphia,Las Vegas,Los Angeles,andMiami,are several examples. Typically the largest streets are about a mile apart, with others at smaller intervals. In theManhattanborough of New York City, "streets" are close to 20 per mile, while the major numbered "avenues" are about six per mile. (Centerline to centerline, 42nd Street to 22nd Street is supposed to be 5,250 feet, while 42nd Street to 62nd Street is supposed to be 5,276 ft 8 in.)[citation needed]

Metric[edit]

Main article:Metric mile

The informal term "metric mile" is used in some countries, in sports such astrack and field athleticsandspeed skating,to denote a distance of 1,500 metres (0.932 miles). The1500 metersis the premiermiddle distance runningevent inOlympic sports.In United States high-school competition, the term is sometimes used for a race of 1,600 metres (0.994 miles).[93]

Scandinavian[edit]

Main article:Scandinavian mile

The Scandinavian mile (mil) remains in common use in Norway and Sweden, where it has meant precisely 10 km since metrication in 1889.[43]It is used in informal situations and in measurements of fuel consumption, which are often given as litres permil.In formal situations (such as official road signs) only kilometres are given.

The Swedish mile was standardised as 36,000 Swedish feet or 10.6884 kilometres (6.6415 miles) in 1649; before that it varied byprovincefrom about 6 to 14.485 km.[43]

Before metrication, the Norwegian mile was 11.298 kilometres (7.020 miles).

The traditional Finnishpeninkulmawas translated asSwedish:miland also set equal to 10 km during metrication in 1887, but is much less commonly used.

Comparison table[edit]

A comparison of the different lengths for a "mile", in different countries and at different times in history, is given in the table below.Leaguesare also included in this list because, in terms of length, they fall in between the short West European miles and the long North, Central and Eastern European miles.

Length (m) Name Country used From To Definition Remarks
0500 lǐ mainlandChina 1984 today 1,500chi In Chinese, this unit and the imperial mile are written using the same word ( lí ), with a qualifier to distinguish between systems if needed
0960–1,152 Talmudic mil Land of Israel/Canaan today 2,000 amot (cubits) Biblical and Talmudic units of measurement
01,480 mille passus, milliarium Roman Empire Ancient Roman units of measurement
01,486.6 miglio[94] Sicily
01,524 London mile England
01,609.3426 (statute) mile England/UK 1592 1959 1,760 yards Over the course of time, the length of a yard changed several times and consequently so did the English, and from 1824, the imperial mile. The statute mile was introduced in 1592 during the reign of QueenElizabeth I
01,609.344 mile some English speaking countries[citation needed] 1959 today 1,760yards On 1 July 1959, the imperial mile was standardized to an exact length in metres. This figure corresponds to 5280 feet at 25.4 millimeters per inch.
01,609.3472 (statute) mile United States 1893 2022 1,760 yards From 1959 also called theUS Survey Mile.From then, its only utility has been land survey, before it was the standard mile. From 1893, its exact length in metres was:3600/3937× 1760
01,807 Scots mile Scotland 1685 5,920 feet
01,820 Italy
01,852 nautical mile international today approx. 1minute of arc Measured at a circumference of 40,000 km. Abbreviation: NM, nm
01,852.3 (for comparison) 1 meridian minute
01,853.181 nautical mile Turkey
01,855.4 (for comparison) 1 equatorial minute Although the NM was defined on the basis of the minute, it varies from the equatorial minute, because at that time the circumference of the equator could only be estimated at 40,000 km.
02,065 Portugal
02,220 Gallo-Roman league Gallo-Roman culture 1.5 miles Under the reign of EmperorSeptimius Severus,this replaced the Roman mile as the official unit of distance in theGallicandGermanicprovinces, although there were regional and temporal variations.[95]
02,470 Sardinia, Piemont
02,622 Scotland
02,880 Ireland
03,780 Flanders
03,898 French lieue (post league) France 2,000 "body lengths"
03,927 Ri Japan 12,960shaku
04,000 generalormetric league
04,000 legue Guatemala
04,190 legue Mexico[96] = 2,500 tresas = 5,000 varas
04,444.8 landleuge 1⁄25° of a circle of longitude
04,452.2 lieue commune France Units of measurement in France before the French Revolution
04,513 legue Paraguay
04,513 legua Chile,[96](Guatemala, Haiti) = 36 cuadros = 5,400 varas
04,808 Switzerland
04,828 Englishland league England 3 miles
04,800
04,900		 Germanicrasta,alsodoppelleuge
(double league)
05,000 légua nova Portugal[96]
05,196 legua Bolivia[96] = 40 ladres
05,152 legua Argentina Argentina, Buenos Aires[96] = 6,000 varas
05,154 legue Uruguay
05,200 Bolivian legua Bolivia
05,370 legue Venezuela
05,500 Portuguese legua Portugal
05,510 legue Ecuador
05,510 Ecuadorian legua Ecuador
05,532.5 Landleuge
(state league)		 Prussia Obsolete German units of measurement
05,540 legue Honduras
05,556 Seeleuge (nautical league) 1⁄20° of a circle of longitude
3nautical miles
05,570 legua Spain and Chile Spanish customary units
05,572 legua Colombia[96] = 3 Millas
05,572.7 legue Peru[96] = 20,000 feet
05,572.7 legua Antigua
old league		 Spain[96] = 3 millas = 15,000 feet
05,590 légua Brazil[96] = 5,000 varas = 2,500 bracas
05,600 Brazilian legua Brazil
05,685 Fersah(Turkish league) Ottoman Empire 1933 4 Turkish miles Derived from Persianparasang
05,840[97] Dutch mile Holland
06,170 milltir Wales 13thC 9,000 camau ( = 27,000 troedfeddi = 243,000 inches) Eclipsed by the conquest of Wales by Edward I
06,197 légua antiga Portugal[96] = 3 milhas = 24 estadios
06,240 Persian legue Persia
06,277 Luxembourg
06,280 Belgium
06,687.24 legua nueva
new league, since 1766		 Spain[96] = 8,000 varas
06,700 Breslau mile Silesia 1630 1872 Also known asmila wrocławskain Polish
06,797 Landvermessermeile
(state survey mile)		 Saxony Obsolete German units of measurement
07,400 Netherlands
07,409 (for comparison) 4 meridian minutes
07,419.2 Kingdom of Hanover Obsolete German units of measurement
07,419.4 Duchy of Brunswick Obsolete German units of measurement
07,420.4
07,414.9		 Bavaria Obsolete German units of measurement
07,420.439 geographic mile 1⁄15equatorialgrads[dubious–discuss]
07,421.6 (for comparison) 4 equatorial minutes
07,448.7 Württemberg Obsolete German units of measurement
07,450 Hohenzollern Obsolete German units of measurement
07,467.6 Russia 7 verst Obsolete Russian units of measurement
07,480 Bohemia
07,500 kleine / neue Postmeile
(small/new postal mile)		 Saxony 1840 German Empire,North German Confederation,Grand Duchy of Hesse,Russia.Obsolete German units of measurement
07,532.5 Land(es)meile
(German state mile)		 Denmark, Hamburg,Prussia Primarily for Denmark defined byOle Rømer.Obsolete German units of measurement
07,585.9 Postmeile
(post mile)		 Austro-Hungary Austrian units of measurement
07,850 Milă Romania
08,534.31 Mila Poland 1819 7146 meters before 1819, also equaled 7verst[98]
08,800 Schleswig-Holstein Obsolete German units of measurement
08,888.89 Baden Obsolete German units of measurement
09,062 mittlere Post- / Polizeimeile
(middle post mile or police mile)		 Saxony 1722 Obsolete German units of measurement
09,206.3 Electorate of Hesse Obsolete German units of measurement
09,261.4 (for comparison) 5 meridian minutes
09,277 (for comparison) 5 equatorial minutes
09,323 alte Landmeile
(old state mile)		 Hanover 1836 Obsolete German units of measurement
09,347 alte Landmeile
(old state mile)		 Hanover 1836 Obsolete German units of measurement
09,869.6 Oldenburg
10,000 metric mile,Scandinavian mile Norway, Sweden today Still commonly used today, e.g. for road distances; equates to themyriametre
10,044 große Meile
(great mile)		 Westphalia Obsolete German units of measurement
10,670 Finland
10,688.54 mil Sweden 1889 In normal speech, "mil" means a Scandinavian mile of 10 km.
11,113.7 (for comparison) 6 meridian minutes
11,132.4 (for comparison) 6 equatorial minutes
11,299 mil Norway was equivalent to 3,000 Rhenishrods.

Similar units:

Idioms[edit]

The mile is still used in a variety ofidioms,even in English-speaking countries that have moved from the Imperial to the metric system (for example, Australia, Canada, or New Zealand). These idioms include:

  • Acountry mileis usedcolloquiallyto denote a very long distance.
  • "A miss is as good as a mile"(failure by a narrow margin is no better than any other failure)
  • "Give him an inch and he'll take a mile"– a corruption of"Give him an inch and he'll take anell"[99][100](the person in question will become greedy if shown generosity)
  • "Missed by a mile"(missed by a wide margin)
  • "Go a mile a minute"(move very quickly)
  • "Talk a mile a minute"(speak at a rapid rate)
  • "To go the extra mile"(to put in extra effort)
  • "Miles away"(lost in thought, or daydreaming)
  • "Milestone"(an event indicating significant progress)
  • Glasgow's miles better,a touristic campaign.

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^Apartitive genitiveconstruction literally meaning "one thousand of paces".[8]
  2. ^Thec. 1300Composition of Yards and Perches,astatute of uncertain dateusually reckoned as an enactment ofEdward I[22]orII,[21]notionally continued to derive English units from three barleycorns "dry and round" to the inch[22]and this statute remained in force until the 1824Weights and Measures Actestablishing theImperial system.In practice, official measures were verified using the standards at the Exchequer or simply ignored.[23]
  3. ^"Pole" being another name for therod.
  4. ^When reading the document it helps to bear in mind that 999,998 = 3,937 × 254.

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

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  5. ^Butcher (2014),p. C-16.
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  11. ^Shuttleworth.
  12. ^Smith (1875),p. 762.
  13. ^Lesley Adkins; Roy A. Adkins; Both Professional Archaeologists Roy A Adkins (14 May 2014).Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome.Infobase Publishing. pp. 199–.ISBN978-0-8160-7482-2.
  14. ^abDe Morgan (12 February 1842)."XXXIVOn Fernel's Measure of a Degree, in reply to Mr. Galloway's Remarks ".The London, Edinburgh and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science.Taylor & Francis: 230–233.Archivedfrom the original on 20 November 2023.Retrieved10 March2023.
  15. ^Zupko (1981),"Miglio".
  16. ^Young, Norwood, ed. (1908).Handbook for Rome and the Campagna.Murray's Handbooks. E. Stanford. p. 29.Archivedfrom the original on 20 November 2023.Retrieved10 March2023.
  17. ^Andrews (2003),p. 70.
  18. ^abEvans (1975),p. 259.
  19. ^Chaney (1911),p. 484.
  20. ^abcKlein (1988),p. 69.
  21. ^abcdeChisholm (1864),p. 8.
  22. ^abcNPL.
  23. ^Chisholm (1864),p. 37.
  24. ^Chisholm (1864),p. 4.
  25. ^Zupko (1977),pp. 10–11, 20–21.
  26. ^Burke (1978),Ch. 9.
  27. ^Adams (1990).
  28. ^Statutes at large from the first year of King Edward the fourth to the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth.Vol. II. 1763. p. 676.Retrieved29 November2011.
  29. ^Act 35Eliz. Icap.6,s.8.[28]
  30. ^Norgate (1998).
  31. ^Morden (1695).
  32. ^Owen (1841),Book II, Ch. XVII, §5.
  33. ^Owen (1841),Book II, Ch. XVII, §2.
  34. ^Edinburgh 2000 visitors' guide.Collins. 1999. p. 31.ISBN978-0-004-49017-5.
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  38. ^"Act ratifying and approving the treaty of union of the two kingdoms of Scotland and England".Records of the Parliaments of Scotland.Edinburgh. 3 October 1706.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2023.Retrieved10 March2023.
  39. ^Rowlett (2018),"Irish mile".
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  41. ^Apian, Petrus (1545).Cosmographie, oft Beschryvinghe der geheelder werelt.de Bonte. p. xvii.Retrieved18 November2023.
  42. ^Metius, Adriaan Adriaansz (1627).Fundamentale onderwijsinghe, aengaende de fabrica en het veelvoudigh gebruyck van het Astrolabium, soo catholicum als particulier.Netherlands: gedr. bij U. Balck. p. 163.Retrieved18 November2023.
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  52. ^1,760 yards × 0.9144 m/yard.[51]
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  59. ^File:Naypyitaw Tollbooth.jpg
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    Act current to 18 January 2012. Canadian units (5) The Canadian units of measurement are as set out and defined in Schedule II, and the symbols and abbreviations therefor are as added pursuant to subparagraph 6(1)(b)(ii).
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    February 2012, Rail Report – 2010 – Report Number R10E0096. Other Factual Information (See Figure 1). 2. Assignment 602 travelled approximately 12 car lengths into track VC-64 and at a speed of 9 mph struck a stationary cut of 46 empty cars (with the air brakes applied) that had been placed in the track about2+1⁄2hours earlier. Canadian railways have not been metricated and therefore continue to measure trackage in miles and speed in miles per hour.
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Bibliography[edit]

Further reading[edit]

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