Jin (mass)

In ancient China, the office of Sima () was in charge of military affairs. Because the management of military grain and fodder involved frequent weighing, mass units (such as and ) were also called (), , and so on. The measuring tools used were called sima scales (). This is still true in Hong Kong. One is equal to sixteen , which is where the idiom "half a jin vs eight liang" comes from. The mass of the varies between different eras and regions, but its ratio to contemporaneous units is generally unchanged: one is equal to sixteen , or 1/120 of a dan. Starting from the late Qing dynasty, the was also written in English as catty or kan based on the Malay name for the unit. Before the Qing dynasty, various regions and industries in China had their own weight standards for and liang. During the Qing, unified weights and measures were implemented. One late-Qing jin was 596.816 g according to the Beiyang government, and equal to 16 liang. ==China==

1915 measurement law On 7 January 1915, the Beiyang government promulgated a measurement law to use the metric system as the standard but also a system based directly on Qing definitions (), with the as the base unit. Mass units in the Republic of China (1930–1959) On 16 February 1929, the Nationalist government adopted and promulgated The Weights and Measures Act to adopt the metric system and limit the updated Chinese units of measurement to private sales and trade, effective 1 January 1930. The updated market units are based on rounded metric numbers, and jin is the base unit. Mass units since 1959 On June 25, 1959, the State Council of the People's Republic of China issued the Order on the Unified Measurement System, retaining the market system, with the statement of "the market system originally stated that sixteen liang is equal to one jin. Due to the trouble of conversion, it should be changed to ten liang per jin." Legally, 1 jin equals 500 grams, and 10 liang equals 1 jin (that is, 1 liang is 50 g). The traditional Chinese medicine measurement system was unchanged. Mass units in ancient TCM prescriptions should be interpreted using the metric (gram) conversions appropriate for the era, not the modern versions of these units. ==Taiwan==

The jin, or kin, in Taiwan is called the Taiwan jin or taijin (). The taijin is equivalent to the Qing-era Chinese jin. In 1895 Taiwan was ceded to Japan, which implemented the metric system, but Taiwan continued to use the old weights and measures. Thus, after China stopped using the Qing system, it came to be known as the Taiwan system. 1 taijin is 600 grams, or 16 Taiwan liang, and 1 Taiwan liang is equal to 37.5 g. ==Hong Kong and Macau==

Hong Kong and Macau mass units According to the original Hong Kong law, Article 22 of 1884, one is British pounds (that is, 3 is equal to 4 pounds). Currently, Hong Kong law stipulates that one is equal to one hundredth of a dan or sixteen liang, which is 0.604 789 82 kilograms (0.604 789 82 kg divided by is 0.453 592 65 kg, the 1878 definition of the British Avoirdupois pound). Hong Kong troy units These are used for trading precious metals such as gold and silver, defined around the British troy weight system. == Malaysia and Singapore ==

Malaysia has similar regulations as Hong Kong, as it was also a former British colony. The rounding is slightly different, a catty (or jin) is 0.604 79 kg. Similarly, Singapore law stipulates that one catty is also equal to 1 pounds, or 0.6048 kg. ==Japan==

In Japan, 1 jin, or kin in Japanese, is equal to 600 grams, but is rarely used. An exception is the jin used for slices of bread. According to the fair competition regulations of the Japanese Bread Fair Trade Council, a jin only needs to be more than 340 g. ==Korea==

The base unit of Korean mass is the . At the time of Korea's metrication, however, the (or Korean pound) was in more common use. The is usually considered equivalent to 600g. The also sees some use among Korean traditional Chinese medicine vendors. ==Vietnam==

In Vietnam, the jin is called the (), and is equal to 604.6 grams. The following table lists common units of mass in Vietnam in the early 20th century: Notes: • The cân ('scale') is also called cân ta ('our scale') to distinguish it from the kilogram (cân tây, 'Western scale'). ==Jin, pound and kilogram==

The jin, pound and kilogram are all currently used in China. Their meanings and conversions in China are as follows: • (Chinese jin; lit. 'market jin'): Or simply called jin, also called Chinese pound. In the market system () in use since 1930, 1 jin equals 500 g, equivalent to 1.1023 pounds. • (kilogram, lit. 'common jin'): A metric unit, equivalent to 1000 g. • (pound): A British Imperial unit, about 453.6 g. == Society and culture ==

Etymology The word catty comes from Malay kati, meaning 'the weight'. It has also been borrowed into English as caddy, meaning a container for storing tea. Chinese idioms • wikt:幾斤幾兩 () • wikt:半斤八兩 () • wikt:缺斤少兩 () • wikt:斤斤計較 () == Gallery ==

Sam-ho-chhi.jpg|Fruit sold in catties in a market in Sanchong, New Taipei, Taiwan Lin Hua Tai tea pricelist.jpg|Tea priced by the catty in Dadaocheng, Taipei, Taiwan Hong kong weight standards 2.jpg|A spring scale in Hong Kong with conversions between the metric system (red), traditional Chinese units (green) and Imperial units (in blue) == See also ==