Dunam

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The dunam of Turkish dönüm also dunam or Donum , is one of several major surface dimensions of Western Asia . It has its origin in the Ottoman Empire , where it referred to the area that a man can plow in one day (cf. Morgen , Acre ). Its name comes from dönmek (Turkish for to turn ). However, it was legally defined as a square area with a side length of 40 paces .

Regional differences and conversion

The area measure "Dunam" denotes areas of different size from region to region.

  • In the Ottoman Empire and initially also in its successor states (in Libya until today) a dunam of approx. 919 m² was valid, which formed a system with further units of area and length:
  • In 1928 this dimension was replaced by a metric dunam of 1000 m², initially in the British mandate area , later also in parts of the French mandate area and in Turkey . This applies today in Israel , in the Palestinian Territories , in Jordan and in Lebanon . In Turkey, the Dekar ( dekar ) has replaced the historical dunam ( dönüm ) of 919 m² as the official unit; In the colloquial language, however, the word dönüm has asserted itself , which can now also denote the dekar .
  • In the former Yugoslavia there was a dunam of approx. 700 m², which has now also been replaced by the metric dunam.
  • In Syria, in addition to the dunam of 919 m², one of approx. 800 m² is also used.
  • The Dunam of Northern Cyprus is 1600 square yards , about 1337.8 m².
  • The Iraqi dunam is 2500 m².

Deviating from this, a Bulgarian measure of area was referred to as denum .

See also

  • Ar (area measure) : The measure Dekar = 10 Ar, which is not very common in Western Europe , is used in Turkey and other countries to denote the metric dunam (1000 m²) in order to avoid confusion with the traditional dunam (919 m²).
  • Stremma - the name for a corresponding area measure in Greece.
  • Dulum , Bulgarian equivalent.

literature

  • Oscar Mothes: Illustrated Construction Lexicon. Volume 2, Verlag Otto Spamer, Leipzig 1864, p. 495
  • Hermann Haack (Geographisch-Kartographische Anstalt Gotha): Geographisches Jahrbuch. Volume 1, Justus Perthes, Gotha 1866 p. XXVII.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ So VL Ménage, review by Speros Vryonis, Jr. The decline of medieval Hellenism in Asia Minor and the process of islamization from the eleventh through the fifteenth century, Berkeley 1971; in: Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London) 36 (1973), pp. 659-661, who (p. 660) points out that the Byzantine stremma was defined in the same way.
  2. ↑ Rosa IM El-Eini, Mandated Landscape. British Imperial Rule in Palestine, 1929–1948, New York 2006, xxiii.
  3. ↑ Helmut Kahnt, Bernd Knorr: Old dimensions, coins and weights. Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig 1986, ISBN 3-323-00013-7 , p. 65.

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