 | Cent currency: Encyclopedia - Cent currency
Cent (currency)
In currency, the cent is a monetary unit that equals 1 / 100th of the basic unit of value. It also refers to the coin which is worth one cent. In the United States and Canada, the 1¢ coin is generally known by the nickname penny, alluding to the British coin and unit of that name.
Etymologically, the word cent derives from the Latin word centum which means hundred. Mints all over the world usually create coins with values ranging from 1 / 100th to 100 / 100th of the monetary unit, while reserving banknotes for higher values. However, coins with a 200 / 100th or 500 / 100th value are not uncommon, especially in cases of commemorative coinage. Many countries have pulled banknotes of a 200 / 100th value out of circulation and replaced them with coins.
Cent amounts between 1 cent and 99 cents are usually indicated by the one or two digits followed by a cent sign which is usually pierced top to bottom by a forward slash or a vertical line: ¢ (2¢, 99¢), or by a lower-case letter c (2c, 99c). In the United States and Canada, the first usage is more common, while in Australia and New Zealand, the second usage is more common.
Other monetary unit subdivision systems are possible, such as the old pound sterling, which until decimalisation in 1971 was subdivided into 1 / 20ths (shillings - s) and 1 / 240ths (old pence - d).
Examples of currencies around the world featuring cents, or related words from the same root such as centavo, centimo, centesimo, sen, are:
- Argentine peso - divided into 100 centavos
- Australian dollar - divided into 100 cents
- Brazilian real - divided into 100 centavos
- European Monetary Union euro - the coins bear the text EURO CENT; actual usage varies depending on language. Greek coins have "ΛΕΠΤΟ" ("lepto") on the obverse of the 1c coin and "ΛΕΠΤΑ" ("lepta") on the obverse of the others.
- Hong Kong dollar - divided into 100 cents (the smallest division in circulation is 10 cents)
- Latvian lat - divided into 100 santims
- Lithuanian litas - divided into 100 centai
- Malaysian ringgit - divided into 100 sen
- Maltese Lira - divided into 100 cents
- Mexican peso - divided into 100 centavos
- New Zealand dollar - divided into 100 cents
- Philippine peso - divided into 100 centavos (sentimos)
- Singapore dollar - divided into 100 cents
- South African rand - divided into 100 cents
- Sri Lankan rupee - divided into 100 cents
- United States dollar - divided into 100 cents
Examples of currencies which do not feature cents
- Japanese yen - the yen in modern times doesn't feature any subdivision of the monetary unit
- Chilean peso - was divided into 100 cents until 1984. Since then, the peso doesn't feature any subdivisions
- Kuwaiti dinar - divided into 1000 fils
- Mauritanian ouguiya - divided into 5 khoums
- Malagasy ariary - divided into 5 iraimbilanja
- Serbian dinar - divided into 100 paras
- Vietnamese dong - No longer subdivided
Categories: Currency | Numismatics
Other related archives1971, Argentine peso, Australia, Australian dollar, Brazilian real, British, Canada, Chilean peso, Currency, Etymologically, European Monetary Union, Hong Kong dollar, Japanese yen, Kuwaiti dinar, Latin, Latvian lat, Lithuanian litas, Malagasy ariary, Malaysian ringgit, Maltese Lira, Mauritanian ouguiya, Mexican peso, Mints, New Zealand, New Zealand dollar, Numismatics, Philippine peso, Serbian dinar, Singapore dollar, South African rand, Sri Lankan rupee, United States, United States dollar, Vietnamese dong, banknotes, coin, currency, decimalisation, euro, hundred, iraimbilanja, khoums, monetary, old pence, paras, penny, pound sterling, shillings, systems, unit, usage, world
 Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Cent currency", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki |
