Kos (unit)

The kos (Hindi: कोस), also spelled coss, koss, kosh, krosh, and krosha, is a unit of measurement which is derived from a Sanskrit term, क्रोश krośa, which means a 'call', as the unit was supposed to represent the distance at which another human could be heard. It is an ancient Indian subcontinental standard unit of distance, in use since at least 4 BCE. According to the Arthashastra, a krośa or kos is about 3,000 metres (9,800 ft).^[1]

Kos (unit)
Unit system	Arthashastra
Unit of	length
Symbol	kos
Conversions
1 kos in ...	... is equal to ...
SI units	3000 m^[citation needed]
imperial/US units	1.8 mi  656 ft

Another conversion is based on the Mughal emperor Akbar, who standardized the unit to 5000 guz in the Ain-i-Akbari. The British in India standardized Akbar's guz to 33 inches (840 mm), making the kos approximately 4,191 metres (13,750 ft).^[2] Another conversion suggested a kos to be approximately 2 English miles.^[3]

Arthashastra Standard units

 

Kos Minar in Delhi

The "Arthashastra: Chapter XX. "Measurement of space and time", authored in 4th century BC by Chanakya (Vishnugupta Kauṭilya), sets this standard breakup of Indian units of length:^{[4][better source needed][5]}

• 1 angul (approximate width of a finger) = approx. 3⁄4 of an inch (19 mm)^{[citation needed]}
• 4 angul = 1 dhanurgrah (bow grip) = 3 inches (76 mm)^{[citation needed]}
• 8 angul = 1 dhanurmushti (fist with thumb raised) = 6 inches (150 mm)^{[citation needed]}
• 12 angul = 1 vitastaa (span-distance of stretched out palm between the tips of a person's thumb and the little finger) = 9 inches (230 mm)^{[citation needed]}
• 2 vitastaa (from the tip of the elbow to the tip of the middle finger) = 1 aratni or hast (cubit or haath) = 18 inches (460 mm)^{[citation needed]}
• 4 aratni (haath) = 1 dand or dhanush (bow) = 6 feet (1.8 m);^{[citation needed]}
• 10 dand = 1 rajju = 60 feet (18 m)^{[citation needed]}
• 2 rajju = 1 paridesh = 120 feet (37 m)^{[citation needed]}
• 10 rajju = 1 goruta = 219 yards (1/8 mi; 200 m)^{[citation needed]}
• 10 goruta= 1 krosha/kos = nearly 3,350 yards (3,060 metres; 1.90 miles)^{[citation needed]}

Conversion to SI units and imperial units

Kos may also refer to roughly 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi)^[6] Arthashastra standard unit of kos or krosha is equal to 3075 metres in SI units and 1.91 miles in imperial units.^{[7][dubious ]}

Usage of kos

Evidence of official usage exists from the Vedic period to the Mughal era. Elderly people in many rural areas of the Indian subcontinent still refer to distances from nearby areas in kos. Most Hindu religious Parikrama circuits are measured in kos, such as 48 kos parikrama of Kurukshetra. Along India's old highways, particularly the Grand Trunk Road, one still finds 16th to early 18th century Kos Minars, or mile markers, erected at distances of a little over two miles.^[8]

See also

• Measurement
  • Hasta, unit of smaller distance
  • Yojana, unit of longer distance
  • Palya, unit of time
  • Vedic metre, measurement of rhythmic structure of verses
  • Hindu units of time
  • Indian weights and measures
  • History of measurement systems in India
• Other related
  • Hindu astronomy
  • Hindu calendar
  • Hindu cosmology
  • Indian mathematics
  • Indian science and technology
  • List of numbers in Hindu scriptures

References

1. "How many kilometers are there in one kos?". Quora. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
2. Yule, Henry; Burnell, A. C. (1903). Crooke, William (ed.). Hobson-Jobson : being a glossary of Anglo-India colloquial words and phrases, and of kindred terms, etymological, historical, geographical and discursive. London: John Murray. p. 261.
3. Prinsep, James (1840). Useful Tables, Forming an Appendix to the Journal of the Asiatic Society. Calcutta: Bishop's College Press. p. 91.
4. Arthashastra, Chanakya, 4th century BC, p. 151
5. ^{[unreliable source?]} "Valmiki Ramayana / Book III: Aranya Kanda - The Forest Trek / Chapter (Sarga) 69". Retrieved 29 September 2007.
6. Measure for Measure, Young & Glover, 1996
7. Cosmic Order and Cultural Astronomy: Sacred Cities of India, By Rana P. B. Singh with a Foreword by John, 2009. pp.4
8. C.D. Verma (10 July 2006). "Signposts lost in history". Tribune India. Retrieved 29 September 2007.