Cent (currency)
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| A United States cent, or 1¢ or a penny. | A euro cent, showing the common reverse side. The obverse side is country-specific. |
In many national currencies, the cent is a monetary unit that equals 1⁄100 of the basic monetary unit. Etymologically, the word cent derives from the Latin word "centum" meaning hundred. Cent also refers to a 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. In Ireland the 1c coin is sometimes known as a penny in reference to the Irish penny, worth 1/100 of the Irish pound replaced by the euro in 2002.
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Whereas the cent is a subdivision of certain dollars (abbreviated $; notably the US and Canadian dollars), a cent is represented by the cent sign, a lower-case letter c pierced top to bottom by a forward slash or a vertical line: ¢. Cent amounts between 1 cent and 99 cents can be represented as one or two digits followed by the appropriate abbreviation (2¢, 99¢, 2c, 99c), or as a subdivision of the larger unit ($0.99). However, possibly because inflation has left very few things that cost less than the larger unit, the cent symbol generally is on the decline.
For example, it has not survived the changeover from typewriters to computer keyboards (replaced by the ^ symbol), which still do provide the dollar symbol where it always has been. On Windows-based computers, Alt+0162 will create the cent sign; on Unix systems with a compose key, Compose+|+C is a typical sequence.
Usage of the cent symbol varies from one currency to another. In the United States and Canada, the usage ¢ is more common, while in Australia, New Zealand and the Eurozone, the c is more common. In South Africa and Ireland, only the c is ever used.
When written, the cent sign (¢ or c) follows the amount, versus a larger currency symbol placed at the beginning of the amount. For example 2¢ and $0.02, or 2c and €0.02.
Usage
Mints all over the world usually create coins with values up to between the equivalent of 0.05 - 5 U.S. dollars, while reserving banknotes for higher values. As inflation lowers the value of currencies, many have replaced the lowest-valued banknotes with coins (Canadian dollar, Australian dollar, pound sterling), removed the lowest-valued coins from circulation, and/or introduced higher-valued bills. The U.S. dollar is a notable holdout, using a $1 bill along with a (less-popular) coin, where nearly all other industrialized nations use solely a coin for the approximate equivalent value.
Other monetary unit subdivision systems are possible, such as the British pound sterling, which until decimalisation in 1971 was subdivided into 20 shillings (s), of 12 old pence (d) each, making a pound equivalent to 240 pence.
Examples of currencies around the world featuring centesimal (1/100) units called cent, or related words from the same root such as céntimo, centésimo, centavo or sen, are:
- Argentine peso (as centavo)
- Aruban florin
- Australian dollar
- Barbadian dollar
- Bahamian dollar
- Belize dollar
- Bermudian dollar
- Brazilian real (as centavo)
- Brunei dollar (as sen)
- Bulgarian lev (as stotinka, Bulgarian: стотинка, "hundredth", from the same PIE root as centum)
- Canadian dollar (as sou or cenne in French-Canadian)
- Cayman Islands dollar
- Cuban peso (as centavo)
- East Caribbean dollar
- Eritrean nakfa
- Estonian kroon (as sent)
- Euro - the coins bear the text EURO CENT; Greek coins have "ΛΕΠΤΟ" ("lepto") on the obverse of the one-cent coin and "ΛΕΠΤΑ" ("lepta") on the obverse of the others. Actual usage varies depending on language.
- Fijian dollar
- Guyanese dollar
- Hong Kong dollar
- Indonesian rupiah (as sen)
- Jamaican dollar
- Kenyan shilling
- Liberian dollar
- Lithuanian litas (as centas)
- Malaysian ringgit (as sen)
- Mauritian rupee
- Mexican peso (as centavo)
- Namibian dollar
- Netherlands Antillean gulden
- New Zealand dollar
- Panamanian balboa (as centésimo)
- Philippine peso (as centavo)
- Seychellois rupee
- Sierra Leonean leone
- Singapore dollar
- South African rand
- Sri Lankan rupee
- Surinamese dollar
- Swazi lilangeni
- New Taiwan dollar
- Tanzanian shilling
- Trinidad and Tobago dollar
- Ugandan shilling
- United States dollar
- Uruguayan peso (as centésimo)
- Zimbabwean dollar
Examples of currencies featuring centesimal (1/100) units not called cent
- British pound - divided in 100 pence
- Croatian kuna - divided into 100 lipa
- Czech koruna - divided into 100 haléřů (sg.: haléř)
- Danish krone - divided into 100 øre
- Indian rupee - divided into 100 paise
- Israeli new shekel - divided into 100 agorot
- Macedonian denar - divided into 100 deni
- Norwegian krone - divided into 100 øre
- Pakistani rupee - divided into 100 paise
- Polish złoty - divided into 100 groszy
- Romanian leu - divided into 100 bani
- Russian ruble - divided into 100 kopeks
- Serbian dinar - divided into 100 paras
- Swedish krona - divided into 100 öre
- Swiss franc - divided into 100 rappen
- Thai baht - divided into 100 satang
- United Arab Emirates Dirham - divided into 100 fils
- Ukrainian hrywnia - divided into 100 kopijkas.
Examples of currencies which do not feature centesimal (1/100) units:
- Japanese yen - no fractional denomination in circulation
- Kuwaiti dinar - divided into 1000 fils
- Mauritanian ouguiya - divided into 5 khoums
- Malagasy ariary - divided into 5 iraimbilanja
Examples of currencies which use the cent symbol for other purpose:
- Costa Rican colón - The common symbol '¢ ' is frequently used locally to represent '₡', the proper colón designation
External links
- U.S. Cent information by year and type. Histories, photos, mintages, mints, metal contents, edge designs, designers, and more.
References
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