Etymology
The word "gallon" comes from the Old French word "galon," which in turn comes from the Latin word "galea," meaning "bucket" or "tankard."
Meaning
A gallon is a unit of liquid measure in the imperial system and the United States customary system. It is defined as:
Origin
The concept of a gallon as a unit of measure originated in ancient Rome, where it was used to measure the capacity of wine casks. The Roman gallon was originally defined as the volume of liquid that could be contained in a cubic foot, but over time it came to be defined in terms of weight instead.
In the Middle Ages, the gallon was adopted by the British as a unit of measure for liquids. The British gallon was originally a variable measure, varying in size from place to place. However, in 1707, the British Parliament standardized the gallon to be defined as 231 cubic inches.
The US gallon was adopted in the United States in 1832. It was originally defined as 231 cubic inches, but in 1866 it was redefined to be 3.78541 liters.
Today, the gallon is still used as a unit of measure for liquids in the United Kingdom, the United States, and other countries that use the imperial system or the United States customary system.
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