| Revision as of 00:52, 23 August 2005 view sourceProhibitOnions (talk | contribs)Administrators16,302 edits It's not British vs American English so much as two differnt numbering systems; added link← Previous edit | Revision as of 07:34, 29 August 2005 view source MaxGreen (talk | contribs)242 edits + floor mosaicNext edit → | ||
| Line 15: | Line 15: | ||
| *] | *] | ||
| *] | *] | ||
| *] | |||
| {{1911}} | {{1911}} | ||
Revision as of 07:34, 29 August 2005
This article is about the floor of a room or building. In mathematics, see floor function. In finance, see interest rate floor
In architecture, a floor is generally the lower horizontal surface of a room (see also flooring). The various levels of rooms in a building are also called floors or stories: "ground floor", "first story", "mezzanine floor", etc.
A confusion arises between the two forms of floor numbering in use worldwide. In most of Europe, and thus British usage, the floor at the ground level is the ground floor, and the floor above is the first floor, which maintains the continental European use dating from the days of the construction of palaces. For example, in French, the term for the ground floor is rez de chausée. But in North American usage, the floor at the ground level is the first floor and the floor above is the second floor; this system is also used in Russia and other countries of the former Soviet Union.
The principal floor is the storey which contains the chief apartments, whether on the ground floor or the floor above; in Italy they are always on the latter and known as the piano nobile. The storey below the ground floor is called the basement even if only a little below ground level, or the cellar, ; the story in a roof is known as the attic or the loft.
In the U.S., the expressions one pair, two pair, etc., apply to the storeys above the first flight of stairs from the ground (see also carpentry).
Floor coverings
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)