The wén (Traditional Chinese: 文, English: cash) was the currency of China from 6th Century BC until 1889 AD and continued to circulate into the 20th century.
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Terminology
It was referred to as the "cash" by English explorers. The term was derived from the Tamil kāsu, a South Indian monetary unit. The English word "cash", meaning "tangible currency", is an older word from Middle French caisse.[1].
History
Traditionally, Chinese coins were cast in copper, brass or iron. In the mid 1800s, the coins are made of 3 parts copper and 2 parts lead[2]. Cast silver coins were periodically produced but are considerably rarer. Cast gold coins are also known to exist but are extremely rare. The coins took on different kinds of shapes as hoes and knives, known as spade money and knife money. The most common formation was the round-shaped coin with a square or circular hole in the center. The hole enabled the coins to be strung together to create higher denominations, as was frequently done due to the coin's low value. Early Korean and Japanese currencies, the Korean mun and Japanese mon, were derived from the wén. In 1695, the shogunate placed the Japanese character gen (元), meaning "yuan" on the obverse of copper coins.[3]
The world's first paper money, issued in China between the 7th and 15th centuries was denominated in wén. The notes carried depictions of coins, sometimes in strings of ten. The notes of the Yuan dynasty suffered from hyperinflation due to over production without sufficient coins to back them and were withdrawn. Paper money reappeared in the 19th century. In the 19th century, foreign coins began to circulate widely in China, particularly silver coins such as the Mexican peso. In 1889, Chinese currency began to be denominated in the yuan and its subdivisions. One yuan was worth 1000 yén.
See also
References
- ^ Douglas Harper (2001). Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved on 2007-04-11.
- ^ Roberts, Edmund. [1837] (1837) Embassy to the Eastern Courts of Cochin-China, Siam, and Muscat: In the U.S. Sloop-of-war Peacock. Harper & Brothers. Harvard University archive. No ISBN Digitized.
- ^ Titsingh, I. (1834). Annales des empereurs du Japon, p. 415.
This article contains material from the Library of Congress Country Studies, which are United States government publications in the public domain.
- Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). [Siyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō (1652)]. Nipon o daï itsi ran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon, tr. par M. Isaac Titsingh avec l'aide de plusieurs interprètes attachés au comptoir hollandais de Nangasaki; ouvrage re., complété et cor. sur l'original japonais-chinois, accompagné de notes et précédé d'un Aperçu d'histoire mythologique du Japon, par M. J. Klaproth. Paris: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland.
External links
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| Overview | Chinese currency |
| Ancient and medieval | Knife money · Flying cash · Jiaozi · Huizi |
| Near modern | Wen · Candareen (fēn) · Mace (qián) · Tael (liǎng) |
| Republic of China | Yuan · Customs gold unit · OT$ (yuan) · NT$ (yuan) |
| Renminbi series | 1st · 2nd · 3rd · 4th · 5th |
| Special administrative regions | Hong Kong dollar · Macanese pataca |
