Ell

File:Ell.jpg

One ell, when used as an alias for the cubit.

An ell (from Proto-Indo-European *el- "elbow, forearm"), when used as an English unit of length, is usually 45 inches, i.e. 1.143 m (for the international inch). It was mainly used in the tailoring business but is now obsolete. It was derived from the length of the arm from the shoulder (or the elbow) to the wrist, although the exact length was never defined in English law.

Several different national forms existed, with different lengths, including the Scottish ell (approximately 37 inches), the Flemish ell (approximately 27 inches) and the Polish ell (0.78 metres, approximately 31 inches).

Sometimes ell is used as an alias for the cubit.

An ell-wand or ellwand was a rod of length one ell used for official measurement. Edward I of England required that every town have one. In Scotland, the Belt of Orion was called "the King's Ellwand."