Gourt Home::Gourt :: North Korean won
The won is the currency of North Korea. It is subdivided into 100 chon. The won is issued by the Central Bank of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Etymology
Won is a cognate of the Chinese yuan and Japanese yen. The won was subdivided into 100 chon (전; 錢; McCune-Reischauer: chŏn; Revised Romanization: jeon).
History
The won became the currency of North Korea in 1945, replacing the Korean yen. It was revalued at a rate of one hundred to one in 1959. For the earlier Korean won, see Korean won.
North Korean won are intended exclusively for North Korean citizens, and the Central Bank issues a separate currency (or foreign exchange certificates) for visitors, like many other communist states. However, North Korea makes 2 varieties of foreign exchange certificates, one for visitors from "socialist countries", and the other for visitors from "capitalist countries". In recent times, FECs have been largely deprecated in favor of visitors paying directly with hard currency, especially the euro.
Since 2001, the North Korean government has abandoned the meaningless rate of 2.16 won to the dollar (which is said to have been based upon Kim Jong-il's birthday, February 16) and banks in the country now issue at rates closer to the black market rate. However, rampant inflation has been eroding the North Korean won's value to such an extent that currently it is believed to be worth about the same as the South Korean won. In any case, the U.S. dollar and other currencies are still worth more in North Korean won on the black market than officially. This is also apparent when one examines the dates of issue or "series" of the different denominations of banknotes (see above).
Coins
Coins in circulation are
| Currently Circulating Coins | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Diameter | Composition | Obverse | Reverse | Minted Year (General issue) (no star) | Minted Year (Socialist visitor) (1 star) | Minted Year (Capitalist visitor) (2 stars) |
| 1 chon | 16 mm | Aluminum | State title, Coat of arms of North Korea | Value | 1959, 1970 | 1959 | 1959 |
| 5 chon | 18 mm | 1959, 1974 | 1974 | 1974 | |||
| 10 chon | 20 mm | 1959 | 1959 | 1959 | |||
| 50 chon | 25 mm | State title, Coat of arms of North Korea, value | Chollima statue | 1978 | 1978 | 1978 | |
| ₩1 | 27 mm | Grand People's Study House | 1987 | N/A | N/A |
Coins with 1 star are for "socialist visitors", and coins with 2 stars are for "capitalist visitors".
Banknotes
As explained above, there are two varieties of foreign certificates. For the 1978 banknote series, foreign certificates were implemented by overstamp and serial number color:
| Variation of the 1978 Series | ||
|---|---|---|
| Overstamp | Serial number color | Target users |
| None | 1 red, 1 black | General circulation |
| Green with Korean text | 2 black | socialist visitors |
| Green with Korean text | 2 red | capitalist visitors |
| Red with numeral | 2 red | replaced the original unstamped notes |
| Blue with numeral | 2 black | Unknown |
In 1988, the Bank of Trade (무역은행) (as opposed to the Central Bank) issued 2 unique series of foreign certificates. They both included 1 chon, 5 chon, 10 chon, 50 chon, ₩1, ₩5, ₩10, and ₩50. The series for "capitalist visitors" was blue-green, while the series for "socialist visitors" was pink. The chon notes had a simple design of patterns and the values, while the socialist won notes depict the International Friendship Exhibition, and the capitalist won notes depict the Chollima statue.
Banknotes in circulation are
| 1992 Series | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Dimensions | Color | Obverse | Reverse | Issued Date | Watermark |
| ₩1 | 116 x 55 mm | Green | Young woman with flowers | Mount Kumgang | 1992 | Chollima statue |
| ₩5 | 126 x 60 mm | Blue | Students with a globe | Grand People's Study House | 1992, 1998 | |
| ₩10 | 136 x 65 mm | Brown-orange | Factory worker, Chollima statue | Flood gates | ||
| ₩50 | 146 x 70 mm | Orange | Young professionals, Juche Tower | Landscape | 1992 | Juche Tower |
| ₩100 | 156 x 75 mm | Red and brown | Kim Il-sung | The birthplace of Kim Il-sung, Mangyongdae | 1992 | Arch of Triumph |
| ₩200 | ? | Blue and green | Flowers | Value | 2005 | Chollima statue |
| ₩500 | 156 x 75 mm | Dark green | Kumsusan Memorial Palace | Suspension bridge | 1998 | Arch of Triumph |
| ₩1,000 | 156 x 75 mm | Green-cyan | Kim Il-sung | The birthplace of Kim Il-sung, Mangyongdae | 2002 | |
| ₩5,000 | 156 x 75 mm | Violet |
Unusually, the 100, 1,000 and 5,000 won bills are of essentially the same basic design, portraying the exact same subjects (although they are colored differently). North Korea has in the past issued whole series of foreign exchange certificate in which the designs are exactly the same, right down to color, only the denomination being different.
See also
- Korean yang (1892 – 1902)
- Korean won (1902 – 1910)
- Korean yen (1902 – 1945)
- South Korean won (1945 – 1953, 1962 –)
- South Korean hwan (1953 – 1962)
References
Economy of North Korea | Currencies of Korea
Won nord-coreà | Nordkoreanischer Won | 조선민주주의인민공화국 원 | Noord-Koreaanse won | Won norte-coreano | Северокорейская вона | Nordkoreansk won | 朝鮮圓
"North Korean won"