almud

English

Alternative forms

• almude

Etymology

From Spanish almud, from Andalusian Arabic المُدّ (al-mudd), from Arabic مُدّ (mudd), probably via Aramaic 𐡬𐡣𐡩𐡠 (mdyʾ) and מוֹדְיָא (moḏyā) or Classical Syriac ܡܘܿܕܝܳܐ (moḏyā) from Akkadian 𒉘𒈨𒌍 (/⁠maddattu, middattu⁠/, “kind of vessel, unit of volume”). Doublet of almude. Cognate with Ancient Greek μόδιος (módios), Latin modius, French muid, and Dutch mud.

Noun

almud (plural almuds)

1. (historical) Synonym of celemin, a traditional Spanish unit of dry measure equivalent to about 4.6 liters.
   • 1990, Carmen Diana Deere, Household and Class Relations: Peasants and Landlords in Northern Peru, University of California Press, page 79:

     An almud is a measure of volume rather than weight; an almud of wheat equals about 22 pounds and an almud of potatoes 20 pounds.

   • 1997, Stephanie Wood, “Nahuatl Testaments of Rural Women”, in Susan Schroeder, Stephanie Wood, Robert Stephen Haskett, editors, Indian Women of Early Mexico, University of Oklahoma Press, page 174:

     Both sexes were equally familiar with and preferred the Spanish almud (equal to four quarts of seed), often rendered almo in Nahuatl, over any indigenous measure.

2. (historical) A traditional Spanish unit of dry measure, highly variable depending on the location and the substance measured but generally between 3 and 20 liters.
3. (historical) A traditional Spanish unit of land area (nominally, the area cultivable by an almud of some particular seed), highly variable depending on the location.
4. (historical) A low wide box once used for measuring almuds.
5. (historical) Alternative form of almude, Portuguese forms of the same measure.

Coordinate terms

• (highly variable unit of dry measure): maquila (¹⁄₂ almud)

Anagrams

• Lumad

Spanish

Alternative forms

• almú (eye dialect)

Etymology

Borrowed from Andalusian Arabic المُدّ (al-mudd), from Arabic مُدّ (mudd), probably via Aramaic 𐡬𐡣𐡩𐡠 (mdyʾ) and מוֹדְיָא (moḏyā) or Classical Syriac ܡܘܿܕܝܳܐ (moḏyā) from Akkadian 𒉘𒈨𒌍 (/⁠maddattu, middattu⁠/, “kind of vessel, unit of volume”). Cognate with Ancient Greek μόδιος (módios) and Latin modius.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /alˈmud/ [alˈmuð̞]
• Rhymes: -ud
• Syllabification: al‧mud

Noun

almud m (plural almudes)

1. (historical, chiefly Spain) Synonym of celemín (a traditional unit of dry measure equivalent to about 4.6 liters)
2. (historical) almud (a traditional unit of dry measure of highly variable size)
3. (historical) almud (a traditional unit of land area of highly variable size)
4. (historical) almud (a low wide style of box traditionally used to measure almudes)

Coordinate terms

• (irregular unit of dry measure): maquila (¹⁄₂ almud)

Further reading

• “almud”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10