What does arroba mean?
The arroba is a traditional unit of weight that originated in the Iberian Peninsula and spread through Spain's and Portugal's colonial empires across Latin America. Its value was never fully standardized: it ranged from roughly 11 to 16 kilograms depending on the country, the era, and even the commodity being weighed, which is why figures such as 'about 15 kilograms' are always approximations. Although largely superseded by the metric system, the arroba survives in agricultural trade in countries like Brazil, where coffee and cattle are still commonly quoted in arrobas. Separately, in modern Spanish and Portuguese the word has taken on a second life as the everyday name for the @ symbol used in email addresses and social media handles — a striking case of an ancient commercial measure becoming part of digital vocabulary. The word derives from Arabic, entering Iberian languages during the centuries of Muslim rule in the peninsula.
A traditional Iberian and Latin American unit of weight, historically about a quarter of a quintal and varying regionally between roughly 11 and 16 kilograms.
"Coffee prices in Brazil are quoted per arroba of sixty kilograms for bagged beans."
Because the value varied by region and commodity, conversions should always state the specific standard being used.
In Spanish and Portuguese, the name for the @ (at) symbol used in email addresses and social media handles.
"Her email address begins with an arroba followed by her username."
Standard pluralization follows English conventions despite the word's Iberian origin.
"The shipment totaled two hundred arrobas of coffee."
In the Spanish-speaking world, the @ sign isn't just 'at' — it's an 'arroba', a weight unit dating back to Arabic traders.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of arroba
Arroba comes from the Arabic ar-rubʿ, meaning 'the quarter', adopted into Spanish and Portuguese during the period of Muslim rule in Iberia. The name reflects its original sense as a quarter of a larger measure (the quintal). Its Arabic origin links it structurally to other Iberian borrowings that preserve the Arabic definite article, such as algebra, alcove, and alfalfa. In modern times the word was applied to the @ symbol, reportedly because the symbol resembled the arroba in old commercial scripts.
How arroba is actually used
In English, 'arroba' appears almost exclusively in discussions of Iberian or Latin American commerce, history, or computing culture. The weight it denotes varies considerably by country and era, so any figure given should be treated as approximate. The @-symbol sense is standard vocabulary in Spanish and Portuguese but is only borrowed into English when explaining those languages.