Weight Conversion in Japan (Complete Weight Conversion Information)

                                                                                         

Today, there are only three nations on earth that have refused to use the metric system – Myanmar (Burma), Liberia and the USA. There’s no good reason for this, because weight conversion using the metric system is incredibly easy; anyone who can do basic arithmetic using powers of ten and have weight conversion charts can “go metric.”


Old-Style Measurements

Throughout most of recorded history, measurement such as conversion weight was based on inconsistent factors; bible scholars are familiar with units of length such as the cubit, which was the distance between a man’s elbow and the tip of his middle finger; the unit of weight conversion was the talent, with the volume of an amphora, or jug – which varied from one region or town to another.

In Japan, the shakkan-hō system was used for nearly 1300 years. Interestingly, the shakkan-hō units of conversion weight were very consistent within themselves, and are still used in the production of rice wine, or sake. The base unit of volume, the shō, is 1,804 milliltres, the standard size and volume for a bottle of sake: all other measures of volume are multiples or base 10 divisors of this unit (so a standard serving of sake is one gō - 180.4 milliliters – about the size of a shot glass).

Units of mass are similarly consistent. However, Japan was forced out of its isolation in the mid-19th Century under pressure by the US and European powers. As a result, metric weight conversion eventually took the place of the old shakkan-hō system.

Using a Weight Conversion Chart

As mentioned earlier, the metric system of weights that is now used around the world is quite simple, being based on multiples of ten. A weight conversion chart from the old-fashioned U.S. system (actually British system, although the U.K. abandoned it years ago) to the new metric system can help a great deal. You might also consider the purchase of a weight conversion calculator, which today is not hugely expensive.

All you really need to know for weight conversion in Japan is that the basic unit is the kilogram, which is about 2.2 U.S. pounds; all other units are some multiple of ten. Since the word kilo means “one thousand,” you don’t need an elaborate weight conversion table or weight conversion charts to know that a kilogram is equal to 1,000 grams, or .022 pounds. Most Japanese foodstuffs are now sold by the gram or kiliogram, simplifying your need to do weight conversion.

About the author:
Wayne Hemrick is active in helping English language teachers with an interest in Japan, find jobs. In this article he talks about weight conversion.

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