I was reading an article in Thai which gave the length of an object as '3 นิ้ว' or 3 inches (3 fingers).

How long is a Thai inch, and how many are there to a Thai foot? 8, 10 or 12?

According to Mary Haas นิ้ว can be taken to mean either an English inch or a Thai inch which is roughly eight tenths of an English one. นิ้วฟุต apparently is only an English inch.

The Thai Wikipedia article: (I've quickly added a couple of translations)

นิ้ว (หน่วยความยาวไทย) (Thai unit of length)

จากวิกิพีเดีย สารานุกรมเสรี (from Wikipedia)

นิ้ว เป็นหน่วยวัดความยาว ของไทยซึ่งต่างจากของอังกฤษ (a Thai unit of length different from the English one)

1 นิ้ว มีค่าเท่ากับ (1 นิ้ว has a value equal to)

* 2.083 เซนติเมตร (centimetres)

* 4 กระเบียด (quarters of an inch - that's a tough one to figure out)

ในทางกลับกัน

* 1 คืบ = 12 นิ้ว

* 1 ศอก = 24 นิ้ว

* 1 วา = 96 นิ้ว

* 1 เส้น = 1,920 นิ้ว

* 1 โยชน์ = 768,000 นิ้ว

Edited November 26, 200718 yr by withnail

1 นิ้ว มีค่าเท่ากับ (1 นิ้ว has a value equal to)

* 2.083 เซนติเมตร (centimetres)

* 1 คืบ = 12 นิ้ว

So 12 นิ้ว equals 1 คืบ which is 25 cm

Whereas 12 นิ้วฟุต equals 1 ฟุต which is one British Imperial foot i.e. 30.48 cm

Thanks

My comment in red:

According to Mary Haas นิ้ว can be taken to mean either an English inch or a Thai inch which is roughly eight tenths of an English one. นิ้วฟุต apparently is only an English inch.

The Thai Wikipedia article: (I've quickly added a couple of translations)

นิ้ว (หน่วยความยาวไทย) (Thai unit of length)

จากวิกิพีเดีย สารานุกรมเสรี (from Wikipedia)

นิ้ว เป็นหน่วยวัดความยาว ของไทยซึ่งต่างจากของอังกฤษ (a Thai unit of length different from the English one)

1 นิ้ว มีค่าเท่ากับ (1 นิ้ว has a value equal to)

* 2.083 เซนติเมตร (centimetres)

* 4 กระเบียด (quarters of an inch - that's a tough one to figure out)

ในทางกลับกัน

* 1 คืบ = 12 นิ้ว

* 1 ศอก = 24 นิ้ว

* 1 วา = 96 นิ้ว

* 1 เส้น = 1,920 นิ้ว

* 1 โยชน์ = 768,000 นิ้ว

Same as above, and a common way Thais memorize:

* 12 นิ้ว = 1 คืบ

* 2 คืบ = 1 ศอก

* 4 ศอก = 1 วา

* 20 วา =1 เส้น

* 400 เส้น = 1 โยชน์

1 นิ้ว มีค่าเท่ากับ (1 นิ้ว has a value equal to)

* 2.083 เซนติเมตร (centimetres)

* 1 คืบ = 12 นิ้ว

So 12 นิ้ว equals 1 คืบ which is 25 cm

or 12 Thai inches = 25 cm ~ 10 English inches.

So the ratio is roughly 12:10. Thus a Thai inch is about 10/12 or ~ .83, like withnail said that a Thai inch which is roughly eight tenths of an English one.

Whereas 12 นิ้วฟุต equals 1 ฟุต which is one British Imperial foot i.e. 30.48 cm

Thanks

Apart from all the technically correct Thai practically an inch is an English inch as in wood measurement and everything I have seen is measured with a tape measure in inches and feet unless using metric especially in the building trade.

Apart from all the technically correct Thai practically an inch is an English inch as in wood measurement and everything I have seen is measured with a tape measure in inches and feet unless using metric especially in the building trade.

The Thai inch is a legacy unit.

I don't recall seeing any real use today.

The only time I saw it used was years ago, in a certain meditation method taught by a certain monk, where 2 inches was referencing the Thai inches.

Apart from all the technically correct Thai practically an inch is an English inch as in wood measurement and everything I have seen is measured with a tape measure in inches and feet unless using metric especially in the building trade.

The Thai inch is a legacy unit.

I don't recall seeing any real use today.

The only time I saw it used was years ago, in a certain meditation method taught by a certain monk, where 2 inches was referencing the Thai inches.

Actually this unit is still used widely nowadays but you might not notice about it.

Thai people often use คืบ and ศอก when saying approximate measurement.

As for land, even the official term วา as in ตารางวา is in used. 1 วา = 200 เมตร

Apart from all the technically correct Thai practically an inch is an English inch as in wood measurement and everything I have seen is measured with a tape measure in inches and feet unless using metric especially in the building trade.

The Thai inch is a legacy unit.

I don't recall seeing any real use today.

The only time I saw it used was years ago, in a certain meditation method taught by a certain monk, where 2 inches was referencing the Thai inches.

Actually this unit is still used widely nowadays but you might not notice about it.

Thai people often use คืบ and ศอก when saying approximate measurement.

I do believe it is used medically

As for land, even the official term วา as in ตารางวา is in used. 1 วา = 200 เมตร

Apart from all the technically correct Thai practically an inch is an English inch as in wood measurement and everything I have seen is measured with a tape measure in inches and feet unless using metric especially in the building trade.

The Thai inch is a legacy unit.

I don't recall seeing any real use today.

The only time I saw it used was years ago, in a certain meditation method taught by a certain monk, where 2 inches was referencing the Thai inches.

Actually this unit is still used widely nowadays but you might not notice about it.

Thai people often use คืบ and ศอก when saying approximate measurement.

I do believe it is used medically

As for land, even the official term วา as in ตารางวา is in used. 1 วา = 200 เมตร

Agree with everything in your post. You are right about the continued use of คืบ and ศอก and วา.

However I was limiting my comment on the "Thai inch" (only) being a legacy unit.

When people refer to "คืบ and ศอก and วา", I always have to convert to the international units in my head. I have a better feel for what I am dealing with then.

Which is why when you give a measurement using a western manufactured tape measure and the Thai manufacturer uses theirs you sometimes get a variance; it's happened a couple of times to me, making pieces of furniture.

Edited November 29, 200718 yr by samtam

Which is why when you give a measurement using a western manufactured tape measure and the Thai manufacturer uses theirs you sometimes get a variance; it's happened a couple of times to me, making pieces of furniture.

Did the difference stem from using the English units vs. Thai units, or was it from the inaccuracy in the tapes themselves?

Inaccuracy in the tapes I think. (Mine is a Stanley, but I have no idea who made their's.)