Convert Plaza (plaza) to Square Rod (rod²) instantly.
About these units
Plaza (plaza)
A plaza is a traditional Spanish area unit, historically used in various regions of Latin America and Spain. Its value varied widely by locality—commonly ranging between 2,700 and 3,000 square meters—depending on the colonial or municipal standards in effect at the time. The plaza's origin is linked to urban planning under Spanish colonial rule. Town centers in Spanish America were often designed around a central plaza, and surrounding parcels were measured using plaza-based units, embedding the measurement into the cultural fabric of settlement. In agricultural contexts, plazas were sometimes used to define modest landholdings such as gardens, homestead plots, or small fields. While largely replaced by metric units today, the plaza remains significant in historical cartography, land deeds, and anthropological studies of Iberian and colonial town development. It stands as a reminder that measurements often evolve out of cultural-practical needs rather than pure geometric abstraction.
Square Rod (rod²)
A square rod, also known as a perch or pole in some traditions, equals the area of a square one rod on each side (1 rod = 16.5 feet). This results in 272.25 square feet. Square rods were widely used in medieval English farming and early American surveying to measure garden plots, small fields, and building sites. Because land taxes were often assessed per rod, the unit became a practical economic tool as well. Though no longer widely used, the square rod appears in historical deeds and archival surveys, making it critical for land historians and legal property research.