Define: Leuca

In French law, a leuca was a unit of measurement equivalent to either 1,500 or 1,000 paces, where a pace represents the distance covered by one step. Furthermore, a leuca could also denote a designated area of one mile surrounding a monastery, which held a privileged or protected status.

Leuca is a term used in French law and history to denote a unit of measurement for distance. There exist three distinct definitions of leuca: a league comprising either 1,500 or 1,000 paces, and a unique region with a radius of one mile surrounding a monastery. For instance, if the distance between two towns is measured to be three leucas, it implies that the distance between them is either 3,000 or 4,500 paces, depending on the definition of leuca being employed. Moreover, the monks at the monastery were granted the use of leuca to claim a special area around their premises, thereby prohibiting anyone else from constructing within one mile of the monastery. These examples demonstrate how leuca was used as a unit of measurement for distance and as a means of defining a special area around a monastery.

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This glossary post was last updated: 1st May 2024.