Page "Furlong" Paragraph 2

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 system of long furrows arose because turning a team of oxen pulling a heavy plough was difficult.

This offset the drainage advantages of short furrows and meant furrows were made as long as possible.

An acre is an area that is one furlong long and one chain ( 66 feet or 22 yards ) wide.

For this reason, the furlong was once also called an acre's length, though of course in modern usage an area of one acre can be any shape.