Hand (unit)

<p>The hand is a non-<a href="/facts/SI/NShmfzlD">SI</a> <a href="/facts/Unit_of_measurement/pvTpWbmC">unit of measurement</a> of <a href="/facts/Length/EwFyAqGH">length</a> standardized to 4 in (101.6 mm). It is used to measure the height of <a href="/facts/Horse/uQ3FA0Ak">horses</a> in many English-speaking countries, including <a href="/facts/Australia/qLHpbppq">Australia</a>, <a href="/facts/Canada/cWWFM8oc">Canada</a>, <a href="/facts/Republic_of_Ireland/k8JzXVze">Ireland</a>, the <a href="/facts/United_Kingdom/kuPAILt2">United Kingdom</a>, and the <a href="/facts/United_States/P0sCdLe5">United States</a>. It was originally based on the breadth of a <a href="/facts/Human/rlcTENsr">human</a> hand.  The adoption of the <a href="/facts/Inch/CocFfm8p">international inch</a> in 1959 allowed for a standardized <a href="/facts/Imperial_and_US_customary_measurement_systems/12BRjE19">imperial form</a> and a <a href="/facts/Metric_system/to24H0YK">metric</a> conversion. It may be abbreviated to "h" or "hh".  Although measurements between whole hands are usually expressed in what appears to be decimal format, the subdivision of the hand is not decimal but is in <a href="/facts/Radix/J5RGWRJF">base 4</a>, so subdivisions after the <a href="/facts/Radix_point/3axE09oT">radix point</a> are in quarters of a hand, which are inches. Thus, 62 inches is fifteen and a half hands, or 15.2 hh (normally said as "fifteen-two", or occasionally in full as "fifteen hands two inches").
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Hand (unit) open-in-new

Hand (unit)