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About these units
Famn (famn)
The famn, related to the English fathom, was a Scandinavian unit roughly equal to 1.78 meters. Like other fathoms, it originated as the distance between a person's outstretched arms, making it a natural measure for tasks performed at arm's length. Historically, the famn was used in maritime contexts, forestry, and measuring firewood. Sailors relied on it when describing water depth, rope lengths, and the dimensions of boats. On land, stacked firewood was often quantified in famnar, making the unit central to resource management in cold northern regions. Today, the famn has largely disappeared from practical use, but it continues to appear in maritime literature, folklore, and historical accounts. Its surviving references help illuminate the working methods and daily experiences of Nordic sailors, fishermen, and rural communities prior to metrication.
Aln (aln)
The aln was a traditional Swedish unit of length equal to roughly 59.4 cm, though its exact value varied slightly by region and period. It belongs to the broader family of "ell" measurements used across Europe, originally based on the length of a human forearm. The aln played a crucial role in Swedish commerce, especially in the textile industry, where cloth was measured by stretching it along standardized rods or boards marked in aln lengths. Because such goods were often woven locally and traded regionally, the aln helped regulate and unify commercial practices before the adoption of the metric system. Although obsolete today, the aln survives in historical texts, architectural references, and Scandinavian museum records. Understanding the aln helps scholars interpret pre-modern construction records, land measurements, and traditional clothing industries, revealing a great deal about everyday life in early Sweden.