maund

Where does the word "maund" come from? It comes from Sanskrit mana, passing through Hindi before entering English (1833).

Maund’s story begins in Sanskrit: mana meant “a measure.” Meant 'measure', from a root meaning 'he measures'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Hindi as man. Became the name of a large unit of weight. It reached English by 1833 as maund. British India standardized the term as a unit of mass. Today, maund means a traditional unit of weight used in South Asia, historically standardized at roughly 37 kilograms.

1. Stage 1 · Sanskrit · ancient mana "a measure", meant 'measure', from a root meaning 'he measures'.
2. Stage 2 · Hindi · medieval man "a large traditional unit of weight", became the name of a large unit of weight.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1833 maund "a South Asian unit of weight, standardized at about 37 kilograms", British India standardized the term as a unit of mass.