For other uses, see League (disambiguation). A league is a unit of length (or, rarely, area). It was long common in Europe and Latin America, but it is no longer an official unit in any nation. The league originally referred to the distance a person or a horse could walk in an hour. Since the Middle Ages many values have been specified in several countries. Contents 1 Different definitions 1.1 The English-speaking world 1.2 Ancient Rome 1.3 Argentina 1.4 Australia 1.5 Brazil and Portugal 1.6 France 1.7 Mexico 1.8 Spain 2 Use in fiction 3 See also 4 References Different definitions The English-speaking world

In English usage over the last few centuries, the league was most often considered to be 3 miles, This was about 4.8 km if referring to the statute (land) mile (now 1609.344 m or 5,280 survey feet, though varying slightly through history) or about 5.6 km if referring to the nautical mile (1,852 m or 6,076 feet). However, English usage also included any of the other leagues mentioned below (e.g., in discussing the Treaty of Tordesillas). Ancient Rome The league was used in Ancient Rome, defined as 1.5 Roman miles (7,500 Roman feet, 2.2225 km, 1.4 mi.). The origin is the "leuga gallica" (also: leuca Gallica), the league of Gaul. See also: Ancient Roman units of measurement Argentina

The Argentinian league (legua) is 5.572 km (3.462 mi) or 6,666 varas: 1 vara is 0.83 m (33 in).1 Australia In certain districts of rural Australia, particularly far west New South Wales, one league is an approximate measurement of distance travelled in one hour by motor vehicle, usually 60 to 80 km (37 to 50 mi).citation needed Brazil and Portugal In Portugal, Brazil and other parts of the Portuguese Empire, there were several units called league (Portuguese: légua): Légua of 18 by degree = 6,172.4 metres Légua of 20 by degree = 5,555.56 metres (Maritime légua) Légua of 25 by degree = 4,444.44 metres

The names of the several léguas referred to the number of units that made the length corresponding to an angle degree of a meridian arc. As a transitory measure, after Portugal adopted the metric system, the metric légua, of 5.0 km, was used. In Brazil, légua is still used occasionally in the country, where it has been described as about 6.6 km. See also: Portuguese customary units France The French lieue – at different times – existed in several variants: 10,000, 12,000, 13,200 and 14,400 French feet, about 3.25 km to about 4.68 km. It was used along with the metric system for a while but is now long discontinued.

Another distance, said to be the one used in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea is four kilometres [1]. See also: French units of measurement Mexico In Yucatan and other parts of rural Mexico, the league is still commonly used in the original sense of the distance that can be covered on foot in an hour, so that a league along a good road on level ground is a greater distance than a league on a difficult path over rough terrain. Spain The Spanish League or legua was originally set as a fixed unit of distance of 5,000 varas (0.84 m each), about 4.2 km (2.6 miles). Officially the league was abolished by Philip II of Spain in 1568, but it is still in use unofficially in parts of Latin America, with exact meaning varying in different countries.

In the early Hispanic settlement of New Mexico, Texas, and Colorado, a league was also a unit of area, defined as being equal to 25,000,000 square varas or about 4428.4 acres.2 This usage of league is referenced frequently in the Texas Constitution. So defined, a league of land would encompass a square that is one Spanish league on each side. See also: Spanish customary units Use in fiction The seven-league boots are a magical prop in some European folk tales. Several authors have used the league to measure distances in their work. Examples are A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth (where one league is worth 3 miles3), Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, Christopher Paolini's Inheritance cycle and Stephen R. Donaldson's Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. The Beatles film Yellow Submarine says in the beginning that the setting (Pepperland) is 80,000 leagues under the sea. Jules Verne used this unit in the title of two novels: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Eight Hundred Leagues on the Amazon In Frank Herbert's Dune universe the first sandworm that Paul Muad'Dib rides was described as being "more than half a league long". In Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun, various antiquated units of measure including the league, chain, span, and cubit are prevalent In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem The Charge of the Light Brigade begins: - Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. In the popular Christmas carol Good King Wenceslas, the Monarch asks his Page..."Yonder peasant, who is he? Where and what his dwelling?" and the Page answers, "Sire, he lives a good league hence, underneath the mountain..." In David Eddings' many volumes of fiction fantasy novels, including The Belgariad and the Mallorean, the primary unit of measuring distance is leagues. See also anthropic units Medieval weights and measures for various definitions of the league. Li (unit), a Chinese unit of length (considerably shorter than a league). Portuguese customary units Spanish customary units Walking References ^ Espasa-Calpe Dictionary, Argentina and Mexico Edition 1945: headword Legua ^ Vikki Gray (1998-12-24). "Land Measurement Conversion Guide". Vikki Gray. http://www.ghostseekers.com/Conversions.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-04.  ^ Fonstad 1991, Introduction, p. x