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We most often use the metric and decimal systems in everyday life. However, there are several measures that do not fit into the general framework. And if some feet and pounds can still be attributed to foreign national systems, then the origin of the same dozens is not entirely clear. In addition, it is also “damn”, which only fuels interest in it, giving a mystical connotation.
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How did the word “dozen” come about?
This word itself is of French origin, from douzaine. Perhaps it is based on the Italian dozzina. But in any case, both of these words are based on the Latin duodecim (duo is “two” and decim is “ten”). So in the word “dozen” the number 12 was originally hidden. And in our language this concept appeared in written sources in the 17th century. However, etymologists do not exclude that the word could have come out under the influence of the originally Russian “hefty”, or even from the old Russian “arc” – power. It is not entirely clear how to relate a force to a specific number.
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How many is a dozen?
The measure is connected with the piece-counting of usually identical objects, it itself is 12. In other words, counting something by the dozens, we consider it 12 pieces each. Prior to the widespread introduction of the metric system, such a count was popular; it was considered not only dozens, but also half dozens. Today this measure can occur, for example, when describing a complete set of dishes or furniture sets (6 or 12 people often take part there), when counting piece units of products (eggs, cans of beer). There is even a magnitude of a dozen dozen, or “gross.”
The measure gave the name dozen. Literally, this means “entering a dozen”, among other 12 identical people or objects that are identical or not different from each other. But most often this word is used in a negative context – remarkable. So they say about an outstanding and eye-catching person, phenomenon, objects.
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Baker’s dozen
And if with a dozen everything is more or less clear, then a damn dozen already clearly relates not so much to mathematics or statistics as to mysticism. This value is associated with the number 13. In European culture, it is considered unhappy. Fear of him even generated a series of phobias. People try not to do important things on the 13th, not settle in the 13th, skip this number in the numbering of floors of buildings, rows in theaters, airplanes, numbering of products …
And superstition connected with the Last Supper is to blame. It is believed that if 13 people gather at one table, then one of them will die in the next year.
Even the profession of “fourteenth guest” has appeared – this is a specially invited person who is called upon to correct the unlucky number. And in Russia, the number 13 is also considered unsuccessful, received the name “damn dozen.”
Interestingly, in England this number is called the “baker’s dozen” or “dozen baker”. The long history of fines for not observing the weight of loaves of bread is to blame. Due to shrinkage, the shopkeepers were forced to add one more, to an additional dozen loaves. It was cut into appendages and added to those rolls that did not reach the standard. Already painfully harsh in the Middle Ages was the punishment for an attempt by bakers to deceive buyers – even to the point of cutting off their hands. It was easier to supplement a dozen.
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