Unit of currency
The
piastre
or
piaster
(
) is any of a number of units of currency. The term originates from the Italian for "thin metal plate". The name was applied to Spanish and Hispanic American
pieces of eight
, or
pesos
, by
Venetian
traders in the
Levant
in the 16th century.
These pesos, minted continually for centuries, were readily accepted by traders in many parts of the world. After the countries of Latin America had gained independence, pesos of Mexico began flowing in through the trade routes, and became prolific in the
Far East
, taking the place of the Spanish pieces of eight which had been introduced by the Spanish at
Manila
, and by the
Portuguese
at
Malacca
. When the French
colonised Indochina
, they began issuing the new
French Indochinese piastre
(
piastre de commerce
), which was equal in value to the familiar Spanish and
Mexican pesos
.
In the
Ottoman Empire
, the word
piastre
was a colloquial European name of
Kuru?
. Successive currency reforms had reduced the value of the Ottoman piastre by the late 19th century so as to be worth about two pence (2d)
sterling
. Hence the name
piastre
referred to two distinct kinds of coins in two distinct parts of the world, both of which had descended from the Spanish pieces of eight.
Because of the debased values of the piastres in the
Middle East
, these piastres became subsidiary units for the
Turkish
,
Cypriot
, and
Egyptian
pounds.
[1]
Meanwhile, in Indochina, the piastre continued into the 1950s and was subsequently renamed the
riel
, the
kip
, and the
dong
in
Cambodia
,
Laos
and
Vietnam
respectively.
As a main unit
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As a sub-unit
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Obsolete currencies
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Other usage
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Early
private
bank currency issues in
French-speaking
regions of
Canada
were denominated in piastres, and the term continued in official use for some time as a term for the
Canadian dollar
. For example, the original French version of the 1867
Constitution of Canada
refers to a requirement that senators hold property
d'une valeur de quatre mille piastres
.
The term is still unofficially used in
Quebec
,
Acadian
,
Franco-Manitoban
, and
Franco-Ontarian
language as a reference to the Canadian dollar, much as English speakers say "bucks." (The official French term for the modern Canadian dollar is
dollar
.) When used colloquially in this way, the term is often pronounced and spelled "piasse" (pl. "piasses"). It was equivalent to 6
New France livres
or 120 sous, a quarter of which was "30 sous", which is also still in slang use when referring to 25 cents.
Piastre
was also the original French word for the
United States
dollar, used for example in the French text of the
Louisiana Purchase
. Calling the US dollar a piastre is still common among speakers of
Cajun French
and
New England French
. Modern French uses
dollar
for this unit of currency as well. The term is still used as slang for US dollars in the
French-speaking Caribbean
islands, most notably
Haiti
.
Piastre
is another name for
kuru?
,
1
⁄
100
of the
Turkish lira
.
The
piastre
is still used in
Mauritius
when bidding in auction sales, similarly to the way that
guineas
are used at British racehorse auctions. It is equivalent to 2
Mauritian rupees
.
[2]
"Piaster" is referenced in the
Steely Dan
song Dr. Wu:
"You walked in
And my life began again
Just when I'd spent the last piaster
I could borrow"
See also
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References
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Further reading
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Eckfeldt, Jacob Reese; Du Bois, William Ewing; Saxton, Joseph (1842).
A manual of gold and silver coins of all nations, struck within the past century. Showing their history, and legal basis, and their actual weight, fineness, and value chiefly from original and recent assays. With which are incorporated treatises on bullion and plate, counterfeit coins, specific gravity of precious metals, etc., with recent statistics of the production and coinage of gold and silver in the world, and sundry useful tables
. Assay Office of the Mint. p. 132.