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The word mile comes from the [[Latin]] ''mille'' meaning one thousand.  The original mile was 1000 paces (''mille passus'') as covered by marching Roman infantry, where 1 pace is equavelent to 2 steps.  The Roman mile was 5000 Roman feet (approximately 1618 British Imperial/US yards or 1480 metres).  

The word mile comes from the [[Latin]] ''mille'' meaning one thousand.  The original mile was 1000 paces (''mille passus'') as covered by marching Roman infantry, where 1 pace is equavelent to 2 steps.  The Roman mile was 5000 Roman feet (approximately 1618 British Imperial/US yards or 1480 metres).  

==Statute Mile==

==Statute mile==

In the reign of Queen [[Elizabeth I]] of [[England]], the mile was decreed by a Statute of Parliament to be 5280 feet long or 320 rods and is therefore known as a '''statute mile'''.<ref>http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/custom.html</ref>  This measure is still used mainly in the [[USA]] and [[UK]]. There has been widespread resistance in [[America]] and [[Britain]] to use the metric system, which continues to this day.

In the reign of Queen [[Elizabeth I]] of [[England]], the mile was decreed by a Statute of Parliament to be 5280 feet long or 320 rods and is therefore known as a '''statute mile'''.<ref>http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/custom.html</ref>  This measure is still used mainly in the [[USA]] and [[UK]]. There has been widespread resistance in [[America]] and [[Britain]] to use the metric system, which continues to this day.

1759 yards are one yard short of one mile.

1759 yards are one yard short of one mile.

==Nautical Mile==

==Nautical mile==

The '''nautical mile''' is a geodetic measurement originally defined as 1 minute of arc measured along a meridian or great circle, or 1 minute of latitude.<ref>http://www.onlineconversion.com/faq_07.htm</ref> However, as we now know that the earth is not a perfect sphere the distance varies between 6067 and 6087 feet using the [[WGS84]] ellipsoid model, with an average of 6076 feet.

The '''nautical mile''' is a geodetic measurement originally defined as 1 minute of arc measured along a meridian or great circle, or 1 minute of latitude.<ref>http://www.onlineconversion.com/faq_07.htm</ref> However, as we now know that the earth is not a perfect sphere the distance varies between 6067 and 6087 feet using the [[WGS84]] ellipsoid model, with an average of 6076 feet.

As ships and aircraft travel through a fluid medium their speed is relative to the speed of the water or air and may be referred to as "boatspeed" or "airspeed".  Consequently, there are several additional definitions of speed which are given in knots: '''speed of a vessel over the ground''' (SOG)<ref>http://www.lowrance.com/Support/Glossary/glossary.asp#Speed-Over-Ground</ref> describes the speed with reference to geographical location and '''velocity made good''' (VMG) describes its rate of progress toward a distant point.<ref>http://www.lowrance.com/Support/Glossary/glossary.asp#Velocity%20Made%20Good</ref>

As ships and aircraft travel through a fluid medium their speed is relative to the speed of the water or air and may be referred to as "boatspeed" or "airspeed".  Consequently, there are several additional definitions of speed which are given in knots: '''speed of a vessel over the ground''' (SOG)<ref>http://www.lowrance.com/Support/Glossary/glossary.asp#Speed-Over-Ground</ref> describes the speed with reference to geographical location and '''velocity made good''' (VMG) describes its rate of progress toward a distant point.<ref>http://www.lowrance.com/Support/Glossary/glossary.asp#Velocity%20Made%20Good</ref>

==Metric Mile==

==Metric mile==

A '''metric mile''' is often used in international sports (athletics, swimming, speedskating) to denote a 1500-metre event.<ref>http://www.yourdictionary.com/ahd/m/m0258850.html</ref>

A '''metric mile''' is often used in international sports (athletics, swimming, speedskating) to denote a 1500-metre event.<ref>http://www.yourdictionary.com/ahd/m/m0258850.html</ref>

==Other Miles==

==Other miles==

Other variations on the mile have been used by the Danish, Dutch, Finnish German, Irish, Italian, Norwegian Polish, Scottish and Swedish and could be from about 1 kilometre up to 12 kilometres in length.<ref>http://thelongestlistofthelongeststuffatthelongestdomainnameatlonglast.com/long265.html</ref>

Other variations on the mile have been used by the Danish, Dutch, Finnish German, Irish, Italian, Norwegian Polish, Scottish and Swedish and could be from about 1 kilometre up to 12 kilometres in length.<ref>http://thelongestlistofthelongeststuffatthelongestdomainnameatlonglast.com/long265.html</ref>