Furlong in most applications. Five furlongs are about 1.0 kilometre ( is the exact value, according to the international conversion). The name "furlong" derives from the Old English words ' (furrow) and ' (long). Dating back at least to early Anglo-Saxon times, it originally referred to the length of the furrow in one acre of a ploughed open field (a medieval communal field which was divided into strips). The furlong (meaning furrow length) was the distance a team of oxen could plough without resting. This was standardised to be exactly 40 rods or 10 chains. The system of long furrows arose
Nicholas Furlong Nicholas Furlong Nicholas Furlong (born 1929) is an Irish farmer, journalist, author and historian from County Wexford. Nicholas Furlong was born in Wexford in 1929. He became a dairy farmer on the family farm at Mulgannon. His father also owned a Pub, located on Wexford town's main street. For many years he wrote a satirical column for the People Group under the pen name "Pat O'Leary" and wrote regular features in "The Irish Press", the Farmers Journal and Biatas (journal to the Irish Sugar Company). He is currently a columnist with Echo Group Newspapers. He is also a member of