fanega

For the Portuguese unit, see fanga.

In Spain and the Spanish-speaking world, various units of dry capacity, mass and land area. Originally the fanega was a unit of dry capacity used for grain. It was also a unit of area, the amount of land that would be sown with a fanega of seed (see seed measures of land).

• capacity
• mass
• land area

As a unit of capacity

In Spain, 20^th century, a unit of dry capacity, about 55.501 liters.¹ In earlier periods the value varied with locality, which is illustrated by the table below of values reported in the 19th century. Although the table gives values by province, bear in mind that in some provinces the same unit might be used throughout the province, but in others the value of the fanega would vary from village to village. The values reported by sources are typically those of the largest city. 

A “media fanega” is half a fanega. Rather than multiplying everything by 2 to report values for the fanega, we have retained the term used in the source material, because the manner of reporting implies that the media fanega was the unit in everyday use.

*We strongly suspect, solely on the basis of the magnitude, that a transcription error was made in 1886 and that these "fanegas" should be "media fanegas". However, so far we don't have other sources for these locales and date.

1. Technical Factors..., 1972, page 157.

2. Dirección General del Instituto Geográfico y Estadístico.
Equivalencias entre las Pesas y Medidas Usadas Antiguamente en las Diversas Provincias de España y las Legales del Sistema Métrico-Decimal.
Publicadas de Real Orden.
Madrid: Imprenta de la Dirección General del Instituto Geográfica y Estadístico, 1886.

3. Kelly

4. Doursther

From Spain the unit spread to its colonies in the Americas.

Argentina	about 137 liters (about 3.89 U.S. bushels). Doursther (1840) estimated it at 132.14 liters, 3¾ Winchester bushels.
Chile	20th century , approximately 96.99 liters (about 2.75 U.S. bushels) (UN 1966) (Technical Factors..., 1972, page 132.) 19th century, 90.75 L (Doursther).
Colombia (UN 1966) Technical Factors..., 1972, page 134.	= 12 celemins, about 55.5 liters (about 1.57 U.S. bushel). Used for grain.
Costa Rica United Nations, 1966. Technical Factors..., 1972, page 137. [Costa Rica. Ministerio de formento.] Medidas y pesas del sistema métrico, y tablas de equivalencia con las antiguas. San José de Costa Rica: Imprenta nacional, 1885. Page 63.	20th century, the UN reported it at = 24 cajuelas, approximately 408.00 liters. 19th century, the 1885 government report described it as 399.84 liters. The same report describes a special fanega for lime that is 9 arrobas or 103.513 kilograms.
Cuba	3 U.S. bushels, about 105.7 liters. Doursther says = 2 fanega of Cádiz, 109.60 L.
Dominican Republic (UN 1966), Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala (UN 1966), Ifni (UN 1966), and Spain (UN 1966) 20th century,	approximately 55.5 liter (about 1.57 U.S. bushel).
Honduras, 20th century (UN 1966)	approximately 1,102.8 liters.
Mexico, 20th century (UN 1966)	approximately 90.816 liters (about 2.577 U.S. bushels).
Morocco	56 liters
Paraguay, 20th century (UN 1966)	approximately 288 liters (about 8.17 U.S. bushels).
Peru	1½ imperial bushels
United States, Territory of New Mexico Report of the Secretary of the Treasury on the Construction and Distribution of Weights and Measures. Senate. 34th Congress, 3rd Session. Ex. Doc. No. 27. Washington: A.O. P. Nicholson, Printer, 1857. Page 83. The author of the report was A. D. Bache.	An act of 12 January 1852, legalized the fanega as a unit of capacity. The half fanega was set = 2476¼ cubic inches.
Uruguay	136.30 liters (3¾ imperial bushels) Doursther.
Venezuela	about 117.5 liters (about 3.33 U.S. bushels)

As a unit of mass

The fanega seems to have became a unit of mass only in the New World. In the 19th century, it was a unit of mass in the cocoa trade, approximately 51 kilograms (except in Maracaibo, where it was approximately 44 kilograms). In Havana, it was both a measure of capacity (approximately 109 liters) and mass (approximately 92 kilograms). (Doursther 1840, page 145.)

Bolivia	see fanega in Bolivia
Colombia Technical Factors..., 1972, page 133.	25 kilograms, used for rice
Costa Rica, 20th century UN 1966 Technical Factors..., 1972, page 137.	= 2 quintales = 92.00 kilograms
El Salvador, 20th century  UN 1966. Technical Factors..., 1972, page 155.	UN (1966) says approximately 196 kilograms. Technical Factors lists four values: in libra in kg 432 199 480 221 600 276 720 331
Venezuela, 20th century (UN 1966)	a unit of mass used for cereals and root vegetables, varying in value from 46 to 400 kilograms (approximately 101 - 882 pounds av.).
Uruguay	20th century, approximately 100 kilograms. (UN 1966) Doursther says 225 - 230 libra of wheat (103.5 - 107.6 kg).
Ecuador, 20th century UN 1966. Technical Factors..., 1972, page 150.	= 200 libras = 2 quintals = 92.0 kilograms (approximately 202.8 pounds av.).
Nicaragua, 20th century (UN 1966)	approximately 161 kilograms (approximately 354.9 pounds av.).

As a unit of land area

In Spain and Ifni, 20^th century, approximately 6,439.56 square meters. (UN 1966) In the 19th century and before there were a variety of values:

2. Dirección General del Instituto Geográfico y Estadístico.
Equivalencias entre las Pesas y Medidas Usadas Antiguamente en las Diversas Provincias de España y las Legales del Sistema Métrico-Decimal.
Publicadas de Real Orden.
Madrid: Imprenta de la Dirección General del Instituto Geográfica y Estadístico, 1886.

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Last revised: 10 July 2009.