| Local Name: | 匁 |
| Using Countries: | Japan |
| Subunit Name 1: | Fun (分) |
| Symbol: | 匁 |
| Symbol Comment: | (Momme) |
| Used Coins: | 4.6匁, 5匁, 8匁, 9.2匁 10匁 |
| Used Banknotes: | 1匁 |
| Issuing Authority: | Ginza |
| Obsolete: | yes |
is both a Japanese unit of mass and former unit of currency. As a measurement, Momme is part of a table of Japanese units where during the Edo period it was equal to ryō (aka Tael). Since the Meiji era 1 momme has been reformed to equal exactly 3.75 grams.[1] The latter term for Momme refers to when it was used as a unit of currency during the Edo period in the form of silver coins.[2] As a term, the word "Momme" and its symbol "匁" are unique to Japan.[3] The Chinese equivalent to Momme is qián, which is also a generic word for "money".[4] While the term Momme is no longer used for currency, it survives as a standard unit of measure used by pearl dealers to communicate with pearl producers and wholesalers.[5]
See also: Mace (unit). The Japanese word Momme first appeared in a family book by the Ōuchi clan during the Bunmei era in 1484.[6] [7] In the English language the word first appears in the early 1700s per the Oxford English Dictionary, which first traces its usage to Johann Jakob Scheuchzer in 1727.[8]