Metric Measurements in Fantasy Novels

[AudaciousVagabond]

Greetings to you all

So today I wanted to discuss the usage of the metric measurement system in a medieval-esque fantasy setting. Who grew up in a metric-only environment I struggle to get an intuitive 'sense' of the Imperial system. By this I do not mean to say that I don't understand how many inches go into a foot, but rather that I can't just can't display a rough estimate of a foot or an inch with my hands on the spot like I can with a metre. Although I've made an effort to get at least some sort of a grasp on the basics, due to how prevalent the system is in many fantasy novels, it does beg the question, must all fantasy stories use the imperial system?

At first I tried just rolling with metric when writing from a character's perspective, but despite all else, I still felt a slight disconnect. Somehow, a simple smith or inn keeper in a medieval setting throwing around words like 'metre' and 'kilogram' just sounded out of place. I am aware that some writers just like to use similes to bypass the usage of any measurement system, but doing this throughout the entirety of a novel may be more than a little tasking and can often be inconvenient. Another alternative would be to introduce a fictional measurement system, but I would think that even if I made a conscious effort outline the rough values of each unit for the reader it would still remain clunky and hard to understand for both myself and the reader.

So, fellow scribes, my question to you would be: what are your thoughts and opinions on this topic?

 

[Feo Takahari]

I'm not sure about distance, but for weight, a lot of fantasy authors use stone.

The metric system is something I associate with a push for consistent rules and measures. To me at least, it would feel a little out of place in, say, a rigidly anti-science theocracy (which would likely have its own measurement system, separate from that of other countries.) Still, it's a small detail, and not one readers are likely to pay much attention to.

 

[stephenspower]

Depending on how often measurements come into play that can't be expressed in other terms (a day's ride instead of 35 miles), what if you developed your own measurement system based on some standard of the world? And if your tone allows for it, it could be comical. Wasn't the cubit once not just the distance from the elbow to end of the middle finger, but that distance on king's arm? What happens after the king changes to, say, someone much shorter or taller? I could see people getting annoyed at the imposition of the new cubit.

And what if each blacksmith developed his own standards, which might extend beyond him? For instance, Krag the Swordmaker makes blades that are 4'2" long as determined by the rod he keeps by his anvil. The swordlength, or Krag in local parlance, might then be adapted for say the height when a boy becomes a man, the length of a sandwich at a fair, and the optimal distance that should be maintained between a girl and her dancing partner while her father looks on. A real world example: the glorious Smoot.

 

[Twook00]

I like J.S. Morin's take on it.

Essentially there are 4 basic methods to consider:

Modern - e.g., Length: inch / meter
Archaic - e.g., Length: finger / yard / furlong
Familiar - e.g., Length: pace / arrow-flight (arflight) / handsbreadth
Invented - e.g., Length: skidl'aharstrackanoa

 

[Gryphos]

I would say it really depended on the kind of aesthetic you're going for. The metric system was only really invented in a time of scientific enlightenment to provide a universal and precise system of measurement in a time when such thing would become useful. But in the middle ages, when 'science' didn't really exist, there was no need for such a system and no means to make it recognisable to everyone. See, if you introduce metres, now suddenly everyone needs a metre stick and ruler. In a medieval type setting I would imagine general terms being used like 'days travel' or 'hour walk', or just 'over there'.

 

[Svrtnsse]

I go with what makes the language flow naturally as I feel it's more important than actually portraying the distance. Feet and inches fit well into the English language, but if I see or read meters or centimeters I tend to stumble a bit on it - even though they are units I'm more comfortable with actually using.

I can see myself using both though - if nothing else just illustrate cultural differences between characters. Someone who's highly educated or from a different country may be using a different set of units.

 

[psychotick]

Hi,

In medieval fantasy I would stick to Imperial all the way. Metric is actually quite an old system of measurement but it simply never became well established inNew Zealand until the senties and eighties so it simply doesn't have that old vibe. I suspect it's the same in all the "colonies".

The one place you might find metrics working better in a medieval setting would be France.

Cheers, Greg.

 

[Chilari]

I struggle with this a bit myself. Being a Brit, I've got a pretty mixed up understanding of measurements which are contextually sensitive (for example, milk, beer and cider come in pints unless it's Swedish cider, then it's in litres, but water and deisel for my car come in litres, except when I'm trying to work out fuel economy, then it's miles per gallon, and I travel in miles and my height is in feet and inches except when I'm at the doctor's and I have no idea how tall 1 metre and 63 centimetres is or whatever it was they said (I can't even remember) and my weight is in stones and pounds (again, except for at the doctor's), but when I'm cooking the flour is in grams (the milk is still in pints though) and the sugar is in tablespoons and eggs in dozens and chances are something like rice or oats is measured in cups, and while distance driven and my height are imperial, the wool I use in crochet is in metres (or grams) and so is the finished product's length or circumference. At work, the area of a building we've built is in square metres except when it's in square feet (and it really depends on the project manager for that one), but of course architectural drawings are in metres and millimetres.)

In short, I don't even know any more.

In fiction, I struggle a little less. It depends on what I'm measuring. I usually go imperial, but for some things, like short-ish distances which are on the flat, even when the same as a person's height, I incline towards metric because on the ground, short distances seem to make more sense that way to my brain, but then I realise it's kind of jarring and switch to paces to be safe.

 

[The Blue Lotus]

I can't see myself reading or enjoying a book using the metric system. I don't use it, I don't get it and it irritates me to no end.
Now I have friends who use metric and feel the same about the US system, but usually it is because they have to convert everything for us over here which can be a lot of extra work for them.

Since metric is not taught at all here until you reach the upper levels of advanced math, usually sometime in HS, if at all, the system is fairly useless here. Unless they changed things on me again since I've been out of HS that is?
I remember trying to learn both systems in fourth grade and failing miserably. After that, the schools I went to kind of gave up on it.

Now, my husband can switch back and forth between the two with shocking ease. It baffles me, but it is cool to watch.

 

[Gryphos]

I can't see myself reading or enjoying a book using the metric system. I don't use it, I don't get it and it irritates me to no end.

You don't get it? It's the most easily understandable there is. 10 millimetres in a centimetre, 100 centimetres in a metre, 1000 metres in a kilometre.

 

[Julian S Bartz]

I think avoid it where you can. When you need to, use whatever sounds the best on the page. The prevalence of imperial in fantasy is likely because it flows best with the writing.

 

[Jabrosky]

I'm not a fan of precise statistical measurements. If I want to create a sense of size or distance for anything, I prefer to use comparisons or metaphors. For example, I might say a city wall would tower over an elephant, giraffe, or whatever is the largest animal in that setting.

 

[Nihal]

You don't get it? It's the most easily understandable there is. 10 millimetres in a centimetre, 100 centimetres in a metre, 1000 metres in a kilometre.

Adding to that, a metre is the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of
1/299,792,458 of a second. It was the 1/10,000,000 part of the quarter of a meridian before that, but this was a less precise length. It's also linked to the water (everything is!), for a cubic metre holds exactly 1,000 litres of water.

A kilogram is the mass of one litre of water. 0ºC is the freezing temperature of the water, 100ºC is its boiling point.

These systems all have in common the fact that they rely on how certain substances or waves behave, and this behaviour can be consistently reproduced if the right circumstances are met. Therefore, if you don't mind a science sounding system or you're writing to other countries than the US meters and kilograms are fine. However, if your world isn't particularly advanced the imperial unit system or one equivalent that uses random items as measurement bases are a better choice.

 

[Guy]

I made my own system. I mainly used existing terms but adapted them to standard American measurments.
Linear
1 cast = 1 mile
1 bowshot = 440 yards
1 spearlength = 8 feet
1 pace = 2 feet
1 hand = 4 inches
1 finger = 1 inch

Weight
1 cube = 1 ton
1 stone = 10 pounds
1 dram = 2 pounds
1 grain = 8 ounces

Volume
1 hogshead = 50 gallons
1 keg = 25 gallons
1 cask = 5 gallons
1 flask = ¼ of a gallon

 

[The Blue Lotus]

Gryphos, Right but it is not easily converted thus a pita.