What Is Minute?
A minute is a unit that measures short amounts of time. One minute is equal to 60 seconds. We use minutes every day to tell time and to measure how long things take. There is also another use of the word minute in math for angles, where it helps measure very small parts of a circle.
Definition
The word minute has two main meanings in science and daily life.
- Minute as a unit of time: One minute is exactly 60 seconds. It is one sixtieth of an hour. There are 60 minutes in one hour.
- Minute as a unit of angle (also called arcminute): One minute of arc is one sixtieth of a degree. There are 60 minutes of arc in one degree.
When people say minute in normal speaking, they almost always mean the unit of time. The angle meaning is mainly used in math, maps, astronomy and navigation.
History / Origin
The idea of the minute comes from very old ways of counting and measuring.
- Ancient people in Mesopotamia used a number system based on 60. This is why we still have 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour.
- The word minute comes from Latin. The Latin phrase pars minuta prima means first small part. This first small part became the modern minute.
- Later, people divided a minute of time into 60 smaller parts called seconds. That is why we have 60 seconds in a minute. The Latin name for second was pars minuta secunda or second small part.
- The same idea was used for angles. A degree was split into 60 smaller parts called minutes of arc, and each of those into 60 arcseconds.
Even after many centuries and new scientific ideas, the 60 based system stayed because it is used everywhere in clocks, maps and science.
Symbol & Abbreviation
The minute has different symbols depending on how it is used.
- Time minute
- Common symbol: min
- Example: 5 min means 5 minutes
- Angle minute or arcminute
- Common symbol: ‘ (a small straight mark, called a prime)
- Example: 30′ means 30 minutes of arc
To avoid confusion, many books use min only for time and the small mark ‘ only for angles.
Current Use Around the World
The minute is used in almost every country and in many fields.
- Everyday life
- Reading clocks and watches
- Telling someone when you will arrive, for example I will be there in 10 minutes
- Cooking times, for example boil for 5 minutes
- School and work schedules
- Science and technology
- Measuring short experiments and tests
- Timing sports and races
- Timing computer tasks and downloads
- Angle minutes
- Maps and GPS coordinates often use degrees, minutes and seconds of latitude and longitude
- Astronomy uses arcminutes to describe sizes and distances in the sky
- Optics and vision science use arcminutes to measure how fine details we can see
Even though the modern SI system is based on seconds for time and radians for angles, minutes are still widely used because people find them easy to understand.
Example Conversions
Here are some simple and useful conversions for the time minute.
Between minutes and seconds
- 1 minute = 60 seconds
- 5 minutes = 5 × 60 = 300 seconds
- 30 minutes = 30 × 60 = 1800 seconds
Between minutes and hours
- 1 hour = 60 minutes
- 1 minute = 1 ÷ 60 hour ≈ 0.0167 hour
- 15 minutes = 15 ÷ 60 hour = 0.25 hour
- 30 minutes = 0.5 hour
- 90 minutes = 1.5 hours
Between minutes and days
- 1 day = 24 hours = 24 × 60 = 1440 minutes
- 10 minutes = 10 ÷ 1440 day ≈ 0.00694 day
Between minutes and milliseconds
- 1 second = 1000 milliseconds
- 1 minute = 60 seconds = 60 × 1000 = 60000 milliseconds
Angle minute conversions
- 1 degree = 60 minutes of arc
- 1 minute of arc = 1 ÷ 60 degree ≈ 0.0167 degree
- 1 minute of arc = 60 arcseconds
- 30′ = 0.5 degree
Related Units
Here are units that are closely related to the minute.
- Second (s)
- The base unit of time in the SI system
- 1 minute = 60 seconds
- Hour (h)
- Used for longer times like lessons or travel
- 1 hour = 60 minutes
- Day (d)
- 1 day = 24 hours = 1440 minutes
- Millisecond (ms)
- Very small unit for fast events
- 1 minute = 60000 milliseconds
- Degree (for angles)
- 1 degree = 60 minutes of arc
- Arcsecond
- Even smaller angle unit
- 1 minute of arc = 60 arcseconds
- Radian
- SI unit for angles in higher math and physics
- Minutes of arc can be changed into radians for precise work
FAQs
Is a minute always exactly 60 seconds?
Yes. By modern definition, one minute of time is always exactly 60 seconds. Clocks and watches are built to follow this rule.
Why does a minute have 60 seconds and not 100?
This comes from ancient number systems that were based on 60. People kept this system for time and angles because 60 can be split into many equal parts like 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12 and 15.
What is the symbol for a time minute?
The usual short form is min. For example, 20 min means 20 minutes of time.
What is the symbol for a minute of arc?
The normal symbol is a small straight mark ‘. For example, 45′ means 45 minutes of arc. This is different from 45 min of time.
How many minutes are in one day?
There are 24 hours in a day and 60 minutes in an hour. So 24 × 60 = 1440 minutes in one day.
What is the difference between minute and moment in everyday talk?
A minute is a clear unit that always equals 60 seconds. A moment is not exact. It just means a short time and can be more or less than a minute.
Can computers measure time smaller than a minute?
Yes. Computers often use milliseconds or even smaller units like microseconds. A minute is still used for human friendly times like how long a download takes.
When should I use minutes instead of seconds?
Use seconds for very short events like a sprint race. Use minutes when something lasts longer, like a song, a phone call or a class break.