| Catty | |
|---|---|
| Unit system | Chinese |
| Unit of | Mass |
| Symbol | 斤 |
| Conversions | |
| 1 斤 in ... | ... is equal to ... |
| Mainland China | 0.5 kg |
| Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand | 0.6 kg |
| Vietnam | 0.6045 kg |
| Hong Kong | 0.60478982 kg |
| Malaysia | 0.60479 kg |
| Singapore | 0.6048 kg |
| Conversions (imperial) | |
| 1 imp 斤 in ... | ... is equal to ... |
| Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore | 1+1/3 lb |
| Catty | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 斤 | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Vietnamese name | |||||||||||||||||||
| Vietnamese | cân | ||||||||||||||||||
| Korean name | |||||||||||||||||||
| Hangul | 근 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hanja | 斤 | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Japanese name | |||||||||||||||||||
| Kanji | 斤 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hiragana | きん | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Malay name | |||||||||||||||||||
| Malay | kati | ||||||||||||||||||
| Manchu name | |||||||||||||||||||
| Manchu script | ᡤᡳᠩᡤᡝᠨ | ||||||||||||||||||
| Möllendorff | ginggen | ||||||||||||||||||
The catty or kati is a traditional Chinese unit of mass used across East and Southeast Asia,notably for weighing food and other groceries. Related units include the picul,equal to 100 catties,and the tael,which is 1⁄16 of a catty. A stone is a former unit used in Hong Kong equal to 120 catties and a gwan (鈞) is 30 catties. Catty or kati is still used in Southeast Asia as a unit of measurement in some contexts especially by the significant Overseas Chinese populations across the region, particularly in Malaysia and Singapore.
The catty is traditionally equivalent to around 1+1⁄3 pound avoirdupois, formalised as 604.78982 grams in Hong Kong, [1] 604.5 grams historically in Vietnam, [2] 604.79 grams in Malaysia [3] and 604.8 grams in Singapore. [4] In some countries, the weight has been rounded to 600 grams (Taiwan, [5] Japan, Korea [6] and Thailand). In mainland China, the catty (more commonly translated as jin within China) has been rounded to 500 grams and is referred to as the market catty (市斤shìjīn) in order to distinguish it from the kilogram, called the common catty (公斤gōngjīn), and it is subdivided into 10 taels rather than the usual 16.
The word catty comes from Malay kati, meaning 'the weight'. It has also been borrowed into English as caddy , meaning a container for storing tea.
The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in both the British imperial and United States customary systems of measurement. Various definitions have been used; the most common today is the international avoirdupois pound, which is legally defined as exactly 0.45359237 kilograms, and which is divided into 16 avoirdupois ounces. The international standard symbol for the avoirdupois pound is lb; an alternative symbol is lbm, #, and ℔ or ″̶.
Tael, or liang, also known as the tahil and by other names, can refer to any one of several weight measures used in East and Southeast Asia. It usually refers to the Chinese tael, a part of the Chinese system of weights and currency. The Chinese tael was standardized to 50 grams in 1959.
Chinese units of measurement, known in Chinese as the shìzhì, are the traditional units of measurement of the Han Chinese. Although Chinese numerals have been decimal (base-10) since the Shang, several Chinese measures use hexadecimal (base-16). Local applications have varied, but the Chinese dynasties usually proclaimed standard measurements and recorded their predecessor's systems in their histories.
A shophouse is a building type serving both as a residence and a commercial business. It is defined in the dictionary as a building type found in Southeast Asia that is "a shop opening on to the pavement and also used as the owner's residence", and became a commonly used term since the 1950s. Variations of the shophouse may also be found in other parts of Asia; in Southern China, Hong Kong, and Macau, it is found in a building type known as Tong lau, and in towns and cities in Sri Lanka. They stand in a terraced house configuration, often fronted with arcades or colonnades, which present a unique townscape in Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, and South China.
Traditional Japanese units of measurement or the shakkanhō (尺貫法) is the traditional system of measurement used by the people of the Japanese archipelago. It is largely based on the Chinese system, which spread to Japan and the rest of the Sinosphere in antiquity. It has remained mostly unaltered since the adoption of the measures of the Tang dynasty in 701. Following the 1868 Meiji Restoration, Imperial Japan adopted the metric system and defined the traditional units in metric terms on the basis of a prototype metre and kilogram. The present values of most Korean and Taiwanese units of measurement derive from these values as well.
A picul, dan or tam, is a traditional Asian unit of weight, defined as "as much as a man can carry on a shoulder-pole". Historically, it was defined as equivalent to 100 or 120 catties, depending on time and region. The picul is most commonly used in southern China and Maritime Southeast Asia.
Taiwanese units of measurement are the customary and traditional units of measure used in Taiwan. The Taiwanese units formed in the 1900s when Taiwan was under Japanese rule. The system mainly refers to Japanese system. The measurement refers to the traditional size of a Japanese flooring mat called a Tatami mat which were positioned to completely cover the floor of traditional Japanese homes, therefore it became a convenient measurement tool as mat area was standardised hundreds of years ago. In Taiwan the measurement units were pronounced in Taiwanese Hokkien and Hakka before World War II and adopted by the Mandarin-speaking immigrants from China in 1949. Today, the Taiwanese units are used exclusively, in some cases alongside official SI units, and in other cases they have been replaced by SI.
A candareen is a traditional measurement of weight in East Asia. It is equal to 10 cash and is 1⁄10 of a mace. It is approximately 378 milligrams. A troy candareen is approximately 374 milligrams (5.77 gr).
A mace is a traditional Chinese measurement of weight in East Asia that was also used as a currency denomination. It is equal to 10 candareens and is 1⁄10 of a tael or approximately 3.78 grams. A troy mace is approximately 3.7429 grams. In Hong Kong, one mace is 3.779936375 grams. and in Ordinance 22 of 1884, it is 2⁄15 ounces avoirdupois. In Singapore, one mace is 3.77994 grams.
Units of measurement used in Malaysia and neighbouring countries include the kati, a unit of mass, and the gantang, a unit of volume.
Cash or li is a traditional Chinese unit of weight.
Hong Kong has three main systems of units of measurement in current use:
Vietnamese units of measurement are the largely decimal units of measurement traditionally used in Vietnam until metrication. The base unit of length is the thước or xích. Some of the traditional unit names have been repurposed for metric units, such as thước for the metre, while other traditional names remain in translations of imperial units, such as dặm Anh for the mile.
A number of units of measurement were used in Indonesia to measure length, mass, capacity, etc. Metric system adopted in 1923 and has been compulsory in Indonesia since 1938.
Jin, or gan in Cantonese, kin in Taiwanese and Japanese, also called "Chinese pound" or "catty", is a traditional Chinese unit for weight measurement in East Asia. It originated in China before being introduced to neighboring countries. Nowaday, the mass of 1 jin ranges between 500 and 605 grams in different places: 500 grams in mainland China, 600 grams in Taiwan, Japan, Korea and Thailand, 604.78982 grams in Hong Kong, 604.5 grams historically in Vietnam, and 604.8 grams in Singapore and Malaysia. The Jin system is mostly used in the traditional markets, and famous for measuring gold, silver and Chinese medicines.
Liang, or leung in Cantonese, also called "Chinese ounce" or "tael", is a traditional Chinese unit for weight measurement. It originated in China before being introduced to neighboring countries in East Asia. Nowaday, the mass of 1 liang equals 50 grams in mainland China, 37.5 grams in Taiwan, Korea and Thailand, 37.799 grams in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, and 100 grams in Vietnam.
Qian, called tsin (cin4) in Cantonese, tiền or đồng in Vietnamese, or "Chinese ounce" or "mace" in English, is a traditional Chinese unit for weight measurement. It originated in China before being introduced to neighboring countries in East Asia. Nowaday, the mass of 1 qian equals 5 grams in mainland China, 3.75 grams in Taiwan, 3.7799 grams in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, and 3.78 grams in Vietnam.
Fen, called fan in Cantonese, hun in Taiwanese, phân in Vietnamese, or "candareen" in English, is a traditional Chinese unit for weight measurement. It originated in China before being introduced to neighboring countries in East Asia. Nowaday, the mass of 1 fen equals 0.5 grams in mainland China, 0.375 grams in Taiwan, 0.37799 grams in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, and 0.378 grams in Vietnam.
Li, called lei in Cantonese, ly in Vietnamese or "cash" in English, is a traditional Chinese unit for weight measurement. It originated in China before being introduced to neighboring countries in East Asia. Nowaday, the mass of 1 li equals 50 mg (i.e., 0.05 grams) in mainland China, 37.5 mg in Taiwan, 37.8 mg in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, and 37.8 mg in Vietnam. Li is mostly used in the traditional markets.
Dan, or Daam in Cantonese, Tan in Japanese and Taiwanese, also called "Chinese hundredweight" or "picul", is a traditional Chinese unit for weight measurement in East Asia. It originated in China before being introduced to neighboring countries. Nowaday, the mass of 1 dan equals 100 jin or 50 kg in mainland China, 60 kg in Taiwan and Japan, and 60.478982 kg in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. Dan is mostly used in the traditional markets.