Convert Square Yard (yd²) to Arpent (arpent (area)) instantly.
About these units
Square Yard (yd²)
A square yard equals 9 square feet or 0.836 m². Historically used in the British Empire and still used in the US and UK for certain materials, the square yard appears frequently in carpeting, turf, paving stones, and textiles. Its intermediate size makes it suitable for areas larger than a square foot but smaller than a square meter, giving it usefulness in construction and home improvement. Although square meters have replaced square yards in most official contexts, industries such as carpeting, sports field design, and gardening continue to use this practical measure.
Arpent (arpent (area))
The arpent is a historical French land-measurement unit whose exact value varied across regions but is commonly taken as about 0.34 hectares, or roughly 3,400 square meters. The arpent was widely used in France before the metric system and carried over into French colonial territories, especially Louisiana, Quebec, and the Caribbean. In North America, the arpent became intertwined with colonial land grants, settlement patterns, and agricultural design. Properties in Louisiana often follow long, narrow "ribbon farms" extending from riverbanks, measured in arpents of frontage width. This arrangement maximized river access for transportation and irrigation, producing a unique landscape still visible today. Because of its regional variation, historians and land-survey experts must interpret arpents within local context. In Louisiana, an arpent is typically standardized to 0.84628 acres for legal purposes, but French historical documents may use values closer to half a hectare. The arpent thus reflects not only agricultural needs but also the administrative and cultural imprint of French colonization on North American geography.