An old unit of measurement for length used in medieval cloth trade, roughly equivalent to one-and-a-quarter yards or about 45 inches.
From Old German and Old English 'eln' or 'ele,' related to 'elbow'—the measurement was originally based on the length of a human forearm from elbow to fingertip.
The aln is named after the human elbow because it was a practical measurement when rulers didn't exist—merchants could measure cloth against their own bodies, making commerce possible without standardized tools.
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