Dictionary

oka en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈɒkə/

Etymology

From Italian oca, from French oque, from Ottoman Turkish اوقه (okka). Doublet of ounce, inch, uncia, ouguiya, and awqiyyah.

Meanings

1. (historical) A former Turkish, Egyptian, Hungarian, and Romanian unit of weight, usually of a little more than a kilogram.
   • Dram (49·5 grains), 100=chequi, 4=oka (2·8286 ℔); dram (49·5 grains), 180=rotl, 100=kintal or kantar (127·29 ℔). 1888, W.M.F. Petrie, Encyclopaedia Britannica, 9th ed., Vol. XXIV, s.v. "Weights and Measures"
   • At Constantinople, the cantaro, or quintal, contains 44 okes, or 100 rottoli; and the cantaro weighs about 123¾ lbs. avoirdupois, the oke 2lbs. 13 oz., and the rottolo 19⁴⁄₅ oz., and the chequee 11¼ oz. avoirdupois... At Smyrna, the cantaro, or kintal, contains 45 okes, or 100 rottoli. The batman is 6 okes, or 2400 drachms; and the oke is 400 drachms, and the rottolo = 180 drachms. The cantaro of 45 okes weighs 123 lbs. 4 oz. avoirdupois; and, therefore, the oke is = 2 lbs. 11 oz. 13 drs. avoirdupois... 1819, Abraham Rees, The Cyclopaedia, volume XXX, Rottolo, page 632:
2. A unit of volume in Egypt (and formerly Turkey) corresponding to about 1.2 litres.

Forms

Meronyms

quintal (superdivisions of the unit of weight) · cheki (subdivisions of the unit of weight) · ounce (subdivisions of the unit of weight) · rotl (subdivisions of the unit of weight) · dram (subdivisions of the unit of weight) · dirhem (subdivisions of the unit of weight) · kantar (superdivisions of the unit of weight) · rottol (subdivisions of the unit of weight) · batman (superdivisions of the unit of weight)