Foot

in measurement, the standard of length. The foot is the historic standard of length among the English-speaking people. The common foot of twelve inches is derived, no doubt, in name at least, from the length of the human foot. Nearly all civilized nations have a similar unit of length bearing a name of similar significance. The actual length of the foot, however, as a standard of measure, varies greatly. The Greek foot, or unit of length, supposed to represent the length of the foot of Hercules, is 12.14 English inches. The Macedonian foot is 14.08 inches. The foot of Sicily is 8.75 inches; the foot of Rome, 11.62; of Milan, 13.68; of Brussels, 10.86; of Geneva, the longest of all, 19.21 inches. According to measurements made by United States military authorities, the average length of the foot of the American soldier is 10.05 inches. During the reign of the English king, Henry I, a yard, popularly supposed to represent the length of his arm, was established as a standard. The foot was declared to be one-third of this standard yard. See Weights And Measures