PALM
, an ancient long measure, taken from the extent of the hand.
The Roman Palm was of two kinds: the great Palm, taken from the length of the hand, answered to our span, and contained 12 fingers, digits, or fingers breadths, or 9 Roman inches, equal to about 8 1/<*> English inches. The small Palm, taken from the breadth of the hand, contained 4 digits or fingers, equal to about 3 English inches.
The Greek Palm, or Doron, was also of two kinds. The small contained 4 fingers, equal to little more than 3 inches. The great Palm contained 5 fingers. The Greek double Palm, called Dichas, contained also in proportion.
The Modern Palm is different in different places where it is used. It contains,
| Inc. | Lines | |
| At Rome | 8 | 3 1/2 |
| At Naples, according to Riccioli, | 8 | 0 |
| Ditto, according to others, | 8 | 7 |
| At Genoa | 9 | 9 |
| At Morocco and Fez | 7 | 2 |
| Languedoc, and some other parts of France, | 9 | 9 |
| The English Palm is | 3 | 0 |
PALM-SUNDAY, the last Sunday in Lent, or the Sunday next before Easter Day. So called, from the primitive days, on account of a pious ceremony then in use, of bearing Palms, in memory of the triumphant entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, eight days before the feast of the passover.
