Cun (unit) - Wikipedia

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Appearance move to sidebar hide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Chinese unit of length

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: "Cun" unit – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (September 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Cun
Chinese name
Chinese	寸
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin cùn Wade–Giles ts'un4 IPA [tsʰwə̂n]
Japanese name
Kanji	寸
Kana	すん
Transcriptions Revised Hepburn sun
Korean name
Hangul	치
Hanja	n/a
Transcriptions Revised Romanization chi McCune–Reischauer ch'i
Alternative Korean name
Hangul	촌
Hanja	寸
Transcriptions Revised Romanization chon McCune–Reischauer ch'on
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese	thốn

Cun
Wooden ruler of the western Han dynasty, unearthed at Jinguan Pass Site in Jinta County
General information
Unit system	Chinese unit
Unit of	length
Conversions
1 cun in ...	... is equal to ...
metric (SI) units	⁠1/30⁠ m ~33.33 mm
imperial/US units	~1.3123 in

Tsun
A section of an old Hong Kong ruler, showing the last (10th) cun of a chi. One can see that the chi in that jurisdiction was exactly equal to ⁠14+5/8⁠ of an inch. A metric ruler is shown next to it for comparison.
General information
Unit system	Chinese unit
Unit of	length
Conversions
1 tsun in ...	... is equal to ...
metric (SI) units	37.1475 mm
imperial/US units	⁠1+37/80⁠ in

Sun
Unit system	Japanese unit
Unit of	length
Conversions
1 sun in ...	... is equal to ...
metric (SI) units	1⁄33 m ~30.30 mm
imperial/US units	~1.1930 in

A cun (Chinese: 寸 ts'wun; Pinyin cùn IPA |mi=[tsʰwə̂n]), often glossed as the Chinese inch, is a traditional Chinese unit of length. Its traditional measure is the width of a person's thumb at the knuckle, whereas the width of the two forefingers denotes 1.5 cun and the width of four fingers (except the thumb) side-by-side is 3 cuns.[1] It continues to be used to chart acupuncture points on the human body, and, in various uses for traditional Chinese medicine.

The cun was part of a larger decimal system. A cun was made up of 10 fen, which depending on the period approximated lengths or widths of millet grains,[2] and represented one-tenth of a chi ("Chinese foot").[3] In time the lengths were standardized, although to different values in different jurisdictions. (See Chi (unit) for details.)

In Hong Kong, using the traditional standard, it measures ~3.715 cm (~1.463 in) and is written "tsun".[4] In the twentieth century in the Republic of China, the lengths were standardized to fit with the metric system, and in current usage in People's Republic of China and Taiwan[citation needed] it measures ⁠3+1/3⁠ cm (~1.312 in).

In Japan, the corresponding unit, sun (寸), was standardized at 1000⁄33 mm (3.03 cm, ~1.193 in, or ~0.09942 ft).

See also

[edit]

• shaku

References

[edit]

1. ^ "TCM Student: Cun Measurements". www.tcmstudent.com. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
2. ^ Chu, Feng-chieh. Binkley, Jim (ed.). "Yu-Ku-Chai: Vol 2, Chapter 3: Deliberations over Accurate Measurements". web.cecs.pdx.edu. https://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~jrb/chin/. Retrieved 2022-03-10.
3. ^ Keightley, David N. (1995). "A Measure of Man in Early China: In Search of the Neolithic Inch". Chinese Science (12): 18–40. ISSN 0361-9001. JSTOR 43290484.
4. ^ Cap. 68 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES ORDINANCE

External links

[edit] Look up 寸 or tsun in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cun (unit).

• Cun measurements

v t e Elements of Japanese architecture
Styles	Secular Azekura Buke Gassho Giyōfū Hirairi Imperial Crown Style Jutaku Omoya Shinden Shoin Sukiya Religious Shinto Azekura Hachiman Hiyoshi (Hie) Irimoya Ishi-no-ma Kasuga Kibitsu Nagare Shinmei Sumiyoshi Taisha Buddhist Daibutsuyō Ōbaku Zen Setchūyō Wayō Zenshūyō	Model of Himeji Castle
Types of building	Secular Castle Chashitsu Kura Machiya Minka Yagura Religious Shinto Haiden Heiden Hokora Honden Kofun Setsumatsusha Shinto shrine Torii Buddhist Butsuden Dō Hōkyōintō Kyōzō Main Hall Pagoda Shichidō garan Shōrō Tahōtō
Roof styles	Hidden Irimoya Karahafu Mokoshi
Structural and spatial	Burdock piling Chigi Disordered piling Engawa Hisashi Irimoya-zukuri Irori Katōmado Katsuogi Kuruwa Moya Nakazonae Namako wall Nightingale floor Onigawara Ranma Sōrin Tamagaki Tatami Tenshu Tokonoma Tokyō Tsumairi Shibi
Gates Approaches	Genkan Kairō Karamon Mon Nijūmon Niōmon Rōmon Sandō Sanmon Sōmon Torii (Mihashira)
Rooms	Chashitsu Daidokoro Mizuya Nando Shoin Toilets Washitsu
Furnishings	Butsudan Chabudai Emakimono Furo Futon Getabako Kamado Kamidana Kotatsu Mitamaya Oshiire Tansu Zabuton Zafu
Partitions	Byōbu Fusuma Jinmaku Kichō Noren Shitomi Shōji (washi) Sudare Tsuitate
Outdoor objects	Chōzuya (Temizuya) Giboshi Ishigantō Komainu Tōrō
Measurements	Ken Koku Ri Shaku Sun
Organizations	Architectural Institute of Japan Japan Institute of Architects Metabolist Movement
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