 | ||
The gill (pronounced /ˈdʒɪl/) or teacup is a unit of measurement for volume equal to a quarter of a pint. It is no longer in common use, except in regard to the volume of alcoholic spirits measures.
Contents
In Great Britain, the standard single measure of spirits in a pub was 1⁄6 gill (23.7 ml) in England, and 1⁄5 gill (28.4 ml) in Scotland; after metrication this was replaced by either 25 or 35 ml (0.176- or 0.246-gill) measures (landlords can choose which one to serve). The 1⁄4 gill was previously the most common measure in Scotland, and still remains as the standard measure in pubs in Ireland. In southern England, it is also called a noggin. In northern England, however, the large noggin is used, which is two gills. In some areas, a gill came to mean half a pint for both beer and milk.
In Ireland, the standard spirit measure was historically 1⁄4 gill. In the Republic of Ireland, it still retains this value, though it is now legally specified in metric units as 35.5 ml.
In Scotland, there were additional sizes:
In popular culture
There are occasional references to a gill in popular culture, such as in the cumulative song "The Barley Mow". In the popular song "The Crystal Ship" recorded by The Doors, the line "the crystal ship is being filled a thousand girls," some people report that "girls" should be "gills." In L. Frank Baum's "The Patchwork Girl of Oz" one of the ingredients required for a magic spell is a gill of water from a dark well. In chapter 19 the obscure unit is used for humor including a pun with Jack and Jill, which also involved a well. In "Bart the Genius," an episode of "The Simpsons," a child tricks Bart by offering, "I'll trade you one thousand picoliters of my milk for four gills of yours." (A picoliter is a trillionth of a liter, so Bart is getting almost no milk in this exchange.) A gill is also referenced in season 2 episode 3 "Blood Test" Archer when Barry explains to Archer that a liter is, "about 8 gills". In George Orwell's Animal Farm, Moses the Raven is allotted a gill of beer a day after he returns, with the implication that this is part of his payment for supporting the farm leaders, the pigs.
Mispronunciation
Because of its more widely used homograph, gill is often mispronounced with a hard 'g' sound.
FX's animated cartoon Archer, mispronounced gill in both Episodes "Blood Test" (Season 2, Episode 3) and "Heart of Archness: Part Three" (Season 3, Episode 3).
Show host Stephen Fry mispronounced gill in a 2013 edition of the BBC TV programme QI.