Hundredweight (US) (cwt (US))
100 pounds (45.36 kg), also called the short hundredweight or cental.
1 hundredweight (US) = 45.359237 kilograms (exactly).
About the hundredweight (US)
Hundredweight is a half-translated Latin idea: centum means one hundred, and medieval English merchants spoke of a centum weight or quintal. Around 1300 several different hundreds were in use as weights. The British version was fixed at 8 stone, or 112 pounds (50.80 kg), by the Weights and Measures Act 1835, so that 20 of them made a long ton of 2,240 pounds. The United States and Canada instead adopted a plain 100 pounds, the figure of 45.36 kg used here.
That round American hundredweight is also called the short hundredweight, and 20 of them make the 2,000-pound short ton. Britain's 1824 act had barred a 100-pound measure because of fraud concerns, but in 1879 it was legalised there as the cental, after merchants importing American wheat and tobacco pressed for it. In the US the unit survives in livestock sales, some grains and oilseeds, paper and certain futures contracts. NIST lists it as 100 lb, about 45.359 kg.
Sources: Wikipedia: Hundredweight; NIST Guide to the SI, Appendix B.8: conversion factors
Hundredweight (US) conversion chart
1 hundredweight (US) expressed in every other weight & mass unit:
| Unit | 1 hundredweight (US) |
|---|---|
| Kilograms | 45.359237 |
| Grams | 45,359.237 |
| Metric Tons | 0.045359237 |
| Pounds | 100 |
| Ounces | 1,600 |
| Milligrams | 45,359,237 |
| Micrograms | 45,359,237,000 |
| Carats | 226,796.185 |
| Stone | 7.142857143 |
| Short Tons | 0.05 |
| Long Tons | 0.04464285714 |
| Troy Ounces | 1,458.333333 |
| Daltons | 2.731597097×10²⁸ |
| Earth Masses | 7.595063293×10⁻²⁴ |
| Solar Masses | 2.281112463×10⁻²⁹ |
| Quintals | 0.45359237 |
| Grains | 700,000 |
| Drams | 25,600 |
| Hundredweight (UK) | 0.8928571429 |
| Quarters (UK) | 3.571428571 |
| Slugs | 3.108095017 |
| Troy Pounds | 121.5277778 |
| Pennyweights | 29,166.66667 |
| Scruples | 35,000 |
| Apothecaries' Drams | 11,666.66667 |
| Roman Pounds | 137.9119398 |
| Roman Ounces | 1,655.446606 |
| Attic Talents | 1.731532944 |
| Attic Minas | 103.8919766 |
| Attic Drachmas | 10,389.19766 |
| Obols | 62,335.18598 |
| Shekels (biblical) | 3,944.281478 |
| Hebrew Talents | 1.574973507 |
| Monme | 12,095.79653 |
| Kin | 75.59872833 |
| Kan | 12.09579653 |
| Qian (Chinese) | 9,071.8474 |
| Liang (Chinese) | 907.18474 |
| Jin (Chinese) | 90.718474 |
| Dan (Chinese) | 0.90718474 |
| Catties (Hong Kong) | 75 |
| Taels (Hong Kong) | 1,200 |
| Tola | 3,888.888889 |
| Seers | 48.61111111 |
| Maunds | 1.215277778 |
| Zolotniks | 10,633.22118 |
| Funts | 110.7627206 |
| Poods | 2.769068016 |
| Libras (Castilian) | 98.58710522 |
| Arrobas (Spanish) | 3.943484209 |
| Arrobas (Brazilian) | 3.023949133 |
More US customary units
- short ton (weight & mass)
- slug (weight & mass)
- US gallon (volume)
- US quart (volume)
- US pint (volume)
- US cup (volume)
- US fluid ounce (volume)
- US tablespoon (volume)
- US teaspoon (volume)
- US gill (volume)
- US fluid dram (volume)
- US minim (volume)
- US legal cup (volume)
- US bushel (volume)
- US peck (volume)
- US dry quart (volume)
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