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Chinese wen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The wén (Traditional Chinese: 文, English: cash) was the currency of China from the 6th century BC until 1889 AD and continued to circulate into the 20th century. The wén was also a unit of weight. The English word cash derives from the Tamil kāsu, a South Indian monetary unit, which was applied by European explorers to the Chinese wén.
Traditionally, Chinese coins were cast in copper, brass or iron, and took such different kinds of shapes as hoes and knives (known as spade money and knife money), but they were most commonly in the form of round-shaped coins 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.
The world's first paper money, issued in China between the AD 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of the Yuan dynasty suffered from hyperinflation due to over production without sufficient coins to back them and were withdrawn.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. A 2000-wén banknote issued by the Qing Dynasty can be seen here.
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 wén.
The wén was also a traditional Chinese unit of weight, equal to 1⁄10 of a fēn (known to Europeans as a candareen), approximately 37.8 milligrams.
| Currencies of China | |
|---|---|
| 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 |
| SARs | Hong Kong dollar · Macanese pataca |