A mantal (Finnish: manttaali) is an obsolete unit once used in Finland and Sweden to measure the size and productivity of a piece of land.
[citation needed] Today, mantal values are only used in connection with some rural obligations and rights, while the size of farms in Finland is reported in hectares.
In late medieval and early modern government, a "mantal" referred to a warrior who served a group of farmers.
According to Sjöström, the government in those days viewed the country and its revenues as a means of providing armed troops, rather than in terms of a population to be fed.
[citation needed] Since about 1720, Finnish land records of independent farms have generally contained the following information: jurisdictional district, parish, village, number in the village, number of households, old mantal value and new mantal value, along with the nature of the land and how the farm's taxes were used.
[citation needed] Today, mantal values are only used in connection with some rural obligations and rights, while the size of farms in Finland is reported in hectares.