Stadion (unit of length)
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The stadion, Latinized as stadium and anglicized as stade, is an ancient Greek unit of length. According to Herodotus, one stade is equal to 600 feet. However, there were several different lengths of “feet”, depending on the country of origin.
| Stade name | Length (approximate) | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Itinerary | 157 m | used in measuring the distance of a journey.[1] |
| Olympic | 176 m | 600 × 294 mm |
| Attic/Italic | 185 m | 600 × 308 mm |
| Babylonian-Persian | 196 m | 600 × 327 mm |
| Phoenician-Egyptian | 209 m | 600 × 349 mm |
Which measure of the stadia is used can affect the interpretation of ancient texts. For example, the error in the calculation of the circumference of the Earth by Eratosthenes[2] or Posidonius is dependent on which stade is chosen to be appropriate.
See also
- Ancient Egyptian units of measurement
- Ancient Greek units of measurement#Length
- Stadia (disambiguation)
- Stadium (disambiguation)
References
- ↑ Hoyle, Fred Astronomy, Rathbone Books Limited, London 1962 LC 62-14108
- ↑ Walkup, Newlyn (2005). "Eratosthenes and the Mystery of the Stades". The MAA Mathematical Sciences Digital Library. Retrieved 2008-07-29.
Further reading
- Engels, Donald (1985). "The Length of Eratosthenes' Stade". American Journal of Philology (The Johns Hopkins University Press) 106 (3): 298–311. doi:10.2307/295030. JSTOR 295030.
- Gulbekian, Edward (1987). "The Origin and Value of the Stadion Unit used by Eratosthenes in the Third Century BC". Archive for History of Exact Sciences 37: 359–363. doi:10.1007/BF00417008.
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