Definition, Meaning & Synonyms
koku
Noun
/ˈkōkō/
Definition
A traditional Japanese unit of volume for rice, historically used to measure how much rice was needed to feed a certain number of people for a year.
Examples
- During the Edo period, a samurai’s stipend was often calculated in koku of rice.
- The annual harvest of the field was measured in koku to estimate the wealth of the land.
Meaning
The koku is equivalent to approximately 180 liters or about 5.1 bushels. It was originally defined in terms of the quantity of rice that could sustain one person for a year, which is about 150 kg of rice.
Synonyms
- None (specific to historical context)
