Ell wide. Ell An ell (from Proto-Germanic *"alinō", cognate with Latin "ulna") is a unit of measurement, originally a cubit, i.e., approximating the length of a man's arm from the elbow ("" literally meant the bend ("bow") of the arm ("ell")) to the tip of the middle finger, or about 18 inches (457 mm); in later usage, any of several longer units. In English-speaking countries, these included (until the 19th century) the Flemish ell ( of a yard), English ell ( yards) and French ell ( yards), some of which are thought to derive from a "double ell". An ell-wand or
The finger is once again explained in the "Suda", where it is said to mean "to touch the anus with a finger". Diogenes Laërtius records how the Cynic philosopher Diogenes of Sinope directed the gesture at the orator Demosthenes in 4th-century BC Athens. In the "Discourses of Epictetus", Diogenes's target is instead one of the sophists. In Latin, the middle finger was the "digitus impudicus", meaning the "shameless, indecent or offensive finger". In the 1st century AD, Persius had superstitious female relatives concoct a charm with the "infamous finger" ("digitus infamis") and "purifying spit"; while in the "Satyricon", an old woman uses