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mão [Portuguese]

1

In Portugal the primary meaning of the word is “hand”, hence also handful. “Ream of paper” is said to be another meaning, but we do not know how many sheets were considered a mão.

2

In parts of India under Portuguese influence, 16ᵗʰ century, a unit of capacity, varying by location and commodity.

Locale		Commodity	Equivalents	Value
Bengala	little port	butter	= 21 1/3 canadas (weighs 2 arrobas)	29.86 L
	little port	oil	= 30 canadas	42.0 L
	big port	butter and oil	= 16 canadas (weighs 48 arrateis)	22.40 L
Dio		butter & oil	= 8¼ canadas weighs 24¾ arrateis	11.55 L
Goa		oil	= 12 canadas	16.80 L
		butter	= 8 canadas	11.20 L
		wheat & rice	= 1/20 candil = 24 medidas	12.25

3

In parts of India under Portuguese influence, 16ᵗʰ century, a unit of mass, in Goa about 11.01 kilograms.

At Hormuz:

The basic source for meanings 2 and 3 is Amtonio Nunez (1544).

for further reading

K[uzhippalli] S[karia] Mathew.
Portuguese Trade with India in the sixteenth century.
New Delhi: Manohar, 1983.

Page 236.

Afzal Ahmed.
Indo-Portuguese Trade in Seventeenth Century (1600-1663).
New Delhi: Gian Publishing House, 1991.

Page 198. Ahmed does not break out his sources for individual units, but most of his sources are codices held by the Historical Archives of Goa in Panaji.