The chi (Tongyong Pinyin chih) is a
traditional Chinese unit of
length
Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Inte ...
. Although it is often translated as the "", its length was originally derived from the distance measured by a human hand, from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the forefinger, and is similar to the ancient
span. It first appeared during
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
's
Shang dynasty
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty a ...
approximately 3,000 years ago and has since been adopted by other
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea ...
n cultures such as
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
(''
shaku Shaku may refer to:
* Shaku (unit)
* Shaku (ritual baton)
* Buddhist surname
In East Asian Buddhism, monks and nuns usually adopt a Buddhist surname and a Dharma name, which are combined in the surname-first East-Asian naming order. Since the 4th ...
''),
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic ...
(''ja/cheok''), and
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
(''thước''). Its present value is standardized at around , although the exact standards vary among the
mainland of the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
, its
special administrative region of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
, and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
.
In its ancient and modern forms, the chi is divided into 10 smaller units known as
cun (the "Chinese inch"). 10 chi are equal to 1
zhàng.
Modern values
In the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
, ''chi'' has been defined since 1984 as exactly 1/3 of a metre, i.e., . However, in the
Hong Kong SAR
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
the corresponding unit, pronounced ''chek'' in
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding a ...
, is defined as exactly or 1 7/32 ft.
The two units are sometimes referred to in English as "Chinese foot" and "Hong Kong foot".
In Taiwan, ''chi'' is the same as the
Japanese ''
shaku Shaku may refer to:
* Shaku (unit)
* Shaku (ritual baton)
* Buddhist surname
In East Asian Buddhism, monks and nuns usually adopt a Buddhist surname and a Dharma name, which are combined in the surname-first East-Asian naming order. Since the 4th ...
'', i.e., .
Historical values
The study of ancient
rulers and other artifacts whose size in the contemporary ''chi'' was known allowed modern researchers to surmise that during the 2nd century BC to 3rd century AD the (
Qin Dynasty
The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...
to
Han Dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
to the
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...
period), the value of the ''chi'' varied between . Even earlier, during the
Warring States
The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...
era, the value of ''chi'' was essentially the same.
It is thought that the ancient Chinese astronomers also used ''chi'' as an angular unit; modern analysis of historical records indicates that it may have been equal to one
degree.
In the 19th century, the value of the ''chi'', depending on the part of the country and the application, varied between . According to an 1864 British report, in most of China the ''chi'' used by engineers in public works was equal to , the surveyors' ''chi'' was , while the value generally used for measuring distances was . In
Guangzhou
Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...
, however, the ''chi'' used for local trade varied from – i.e., very close to the modern ''chek''. The value fixed by a Sino-British treaty for the purposes of customs duties in Hong Kong was .
Usage in Chinese language
Due to its long history and its widespread usage, ''chi'' (along with ''cun'') has also seen metaphorical usages in the Chinese language. For example, ''chi cun'' (), a word made up of the units ''chi'' and ''cun'', refers to the dimensions of an object, while the idiom "
dé cùn jìn chǐ" () means "extremely greedy".
In informal use in China, ''chi'' is also sometimes used to refer to the
US or
imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* Imperial, Texas
...
foot
The foot ( : feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg mad ...
.
References
External links
{{Wiktionary, chi, chek, 尺
Units of length