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prettygoodwordpalm (PAHM) - n., a unit of length equal to the width or length of a hand.
In traditional English usage, it's the width of the flat of the hand or of four fingers, sometimes defined as 3 inches (7.6 cm), but in medieval and early modern continental Europe they used the "long palm" or the length from the wrist to tip of the middle finger. It's neither a current Imperial unit nor a customary US measurement, unlike the hand (width including thumb, or 4 in, still used to measure the height of horses). Palm comes from Middle English palme/paume, from Old French palme/paulme/paume, from Latin palma, ultimately from PIE *pl̥h₂(e)meh₂ , palm of the hand, from *pleh₂-, flat.
---L.
In traditional English usage, it's the width of the flat of the hand or of four fingers, sometimes defined as 3 inches (7.6 cm), but in medieval and early modern continental Europe they used the "long palm" or the length from the wrist to tip of the middle finger. It's neither a current Imperial unit nor a customary US measurement, unlike the hand (width including thumb, or 4 in, still used to measure the height of horses). Palm comes from Middle English palme/paume, from Old French palme/paulme/paume, from Latin palma, ultimately from PIE *pl̥h₂(e)meh₂ , palm of the hand, from *pleh₂-, flat.
---L.
