Pound (currency)

Pound is the name of various units of currency. It is used in some countries today and previously was used in many others. The English word "pound" derives from the Latin expression lībra pondō, in which lībra is a noun meaning 'pound' and pondō is an adverb meaning 'by weight'.^[1]^[2] The currency's symbol is '£', a stylised form of the blackletter 'L' ( ${\mathfrak {L}}$ ) (from libra), crossed to indicate abbreviation.^[3]

The term was adopted in England from the weight^[a] of silver used to make 240 pennies,^[6] and eventually spread to British colonies all over the world. While silver pennies were produced seven centuries earlier, the first pound coin was minted under Henry VII in 1489.^[5]

Countries and territories currently using currency units named "pound"

Country/territory	Currency	ISO 4217 code	Tied to sterling?
Egypt	Egyptian pound	EGP	No
Falkland Islands	Falkland Islands pound	FKP	Yes
Gibraltar	Gibraltar pound	GIP	Yes
Guernsey	Guernsey pound	GBP	Yes
Alderney	Alderney pound	GBP (informally)	Yes
Isle of Man	Manx pound	GBP	Yes
Jersey	Jersey pound	GBP	Yes
Lebanon	Lebanese pound	LBP	No
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha	Saint Helena pound	SHP	Yes
South Sudan	South Sudanese pound	SSP	No
Sudan	Sudanese pound	SDG	No
Syria	Syrian pound	SYP	No
United Kingdom	Sterling^[b]	GBP	N/A
British Antarctic Territory^[8]
British Indian Ocean Territory^[9]
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands^[10]

Historical currencies

Australian pound (until 1966, replaced by the Australian dollar). The Australian pound was also used in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands, Nauru, New Hebrides and Papua and New Guinea. It was replaced in the New Hebrides/Vanuatu in 1981 by the Vanuatu vatu.
Bahamian pound (until 1966, replaced by the Bahamian dollar)
Bermudian pound (until 1970, replaced by the Bermudian dollar)
Biafran pound (1968 to 1970, replaced by the Nigerian pound)
British West African pound
- in British Cameroon replaced by the CFA franc in 1961
- in Gambia, replaced by the Gambian pound in 1968
- in Ghana, replaced by the Ghanaian pound in 1958
- in Liberia, replaced by the U.S. dollar in 1943
- in Nigeria, replaced by the Nigerian pound in 1958
- in Sierra Leone, replaced by the leone in 1964
Canadian pound (until 1859, replaced by the Canadian dollar)
Cypriot pound (Cyprus and Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, until 1 January 2008, replaced by the euro)
Fijian pound (until 1969, replaced by the Fijian dollar)
Gambian pound (1968 to 1971, replaced by the dalasi)
Ghanaian pound (1958 to 1965, replaced by the cedi)
Irish pound (Irish: Punt na hÉireann) (until 2002, replaced by the euro)
Israeli pound, also known as the Israeli lira (until 1980, replaced by the shekel)
Jamaican pound (until 1968, replaced by the Jamaican dollar). The Jamaican pound was also used in Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands until 1968.
Jordanian pound; see Palestine pound, below.
Libyan pound (until 1971, replaced by the Libyan dinar)
Malawian pound (1964 to 1970, replaced by the Malawian kwacha)
Maltese pound (also known as the Maltese lira and replaced by the euro on 1 January 2008)
New Brunswick pound (until 1860, replaced by the New Brunswick dollar)
Newfoundland pound (until 1865, replaced by the Newfoundland dollar)
New Guinean pound
New Zealand pound (until 1967, replaced by the New Zealand dollar). The New Zealand pound was also used in the Cook Islands and the Pitcairn Islands.
Nigerian pound (1958 to 1973, replaced by the naira)
Nova Scotian pound (until 1860, replaced by the Nova Scotian dollar)
Oceanian pound (1942-1945 under Japanese occupation of Kiribati, Nauru, New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu)
Palestine pound (replaced by the Israeli pound; also served as Jordanian pound, replaced in Jordan by the Jordanian dinar)
Pound Scots of Scotland (until 1707 union with England)
Prince Edward Island pound (until 1871, replaced by the Prince Edward Island dollar)
Rhodesian pound (1964 until 1970 in Rhodesia, replaced by the Rhodesian dollar)
Rhodesia and Nyasaland pound (1955-1964, replaced in Southern Rhodesia renamed Rhodesia by the Rhodesian pound, in Northern Rhodesia renamed Zambia by the Zambian pound, and in Nyasaland renamed Malawi by the Malawian pound)
Samoan pound (1914–1920 provisional issue by the New Zealand Government military administration. 1920–1959 by the New Zealand Government administration (Treasury notes). 1960–1963 by the Bank of Western Samoa. Replaced 1967 by the tala ($).)
Scottish pound: see Pound Scots, above.
Solomon Islands pound (1916-1932, replaced by the Australian pound)
South African pound (until 1961, replaced by South African rand). The South African pound was also used in Basutoland, Bechuanaland, South West Africa and Swaziland.
South African Republic pond (refers to the republic in Transvaal, issued 1867–1902, replaced by the South African pound)
South West African pound (1930s to 1961, replaced by South African rand)
Southern Rhodesian pound (1896-1955, circulated also in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland; replaced by Rhodesia and Nyasaland pound)
Sudanese pound (until 1992 and since January 2007)
Tongan pound (1921–1966 Government of Tonga Treasury notes. 1967 replaced by the pa'anga ($))
Transvaal pound (see above, South African Republic pond)
West Indian pound (until 1949, replaced by East Caribbean dollar)
Western Samoan pound (1920-1967, replaced by Samoan tala)
Zambian pound (1964 to 1968, replaced by the Zambian kwacha)

Currencies of the former British colonies in America

All of the following currencies have been replaced by the US dollar.

Notes

^ The Pound (mass) in question was a Tower pound (5,400 grains, 349.9 grams (11.25 troy ounces), about 0.77 avoirdupois pounds, also called the 'Moneyers' Pound' (referring to the Saxon moneyers before the Conquest).^[4] "In practice they" [the silver pennies] "varied considerably in weight and 240 of them seldom added up to a pound".^[5]
^ The correct name for the currency is "sterling" and the "pound" is its primary unit. When necessary to distinguish sterling from other pounds, the qualified names "pound sterling" or "British pound" are used, especially in international trade contexts, where those names are used even when disambiguation is not needed.^[7] This qualified form is almost never encountered in the United Kingdom, except in banking.

References

^ Harper, Douglas. "Libra (n.)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Archived from the original on 2 June 2022.
^ Harper, Douglas. "pound (n.1)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022.
^ "The Origins of £sd". The Royal Mint Museum. Archived from the original on 8 March 2020.
^ "Tower pound". Sizes.com. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
^ ^a ^b Lowther, Ed (14 February 2014). "A short history of the pound". BBC News. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014.
^ "Pound sterling". Britannica. Archived from the original on 16 June 2008. Retrieved 22 July 2021. Silver coins known as "sterlings" were issued in the Saxon kingdoms, 240 of them being minted from a pound of silver... Hence, large payments came to be reckoned in "pounds of sterlings", a phrase later shortened...
^ Moles, Peter; Terry, Nicholas (1999). The Handbook of International Financial Terms. ISBN 9780198294818. Sterling (UK).: The name given to the currency of the United Kingdom (cf. cable). Also called pound sterling or pounds.
^ "Foreign and Commonwealth Office country profiles: British Antarctic Territory". Archived from the original on 2003-09-02.
^ "Foreign and Commonwealth Office country profiles: British Indian Ocean Territory". Archived from the original on October 16, 2007.
^ "Foreign and Commonwealth Office country profiles: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands". 19 February 2024.

[6] The Pound (mass) in question was a Tower pound (5,400 grains, 349.9 grams (11.25 troy ounces), about 0.77 avoirdupois pounds, also called the 'Moneyers' Pound' (referring to the Saxon moneyers before the Conquest).^[4] "In practice they" [the silver pennies] "varied considerably in weight and 240 of them seldom added up to a pound".^[5]

[9] The correct name for the currency is "sterling" and the "pound" is its primary unit. When necessary to distinguish sterling from other pounds, the qualified names "pound sterling" or "British pound" are used, especially in international trade contexts, where those names are used even when disambiguation is not needed.^[7] This qualified form is almost never encountered in the United Kingdom, except in banking.

[1] Harper, Douglas. "Libra (n.)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Archived from the original on 2 June 2022.

[2] Harper, Douglas. "pound (n.1)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022.

[3] "The Origins of £sd". The Royal Mint Museum. Archived from the original on 8 March 2020.

[4] "Tower pound". Sizes.com. Retrieved 17 September 2016.

[Lowther-5] Lowther, Ed (14 February 2014). "A short history of the pound". BBC News. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014.

[7] "Pound sterling". Britannica. Archived from the original on 16 June 2008. Retrieved 22 July 2021. Silver coins known as "sterlings" were issued in the Saxon kingdoms, 240 of them being minted from a pound of silver... Hence, large payments came to be reckoned in "pounds of sterlings", a phrase later shortened...

[HbIFT-8] Moles, Peter; Terry, Nicholas (1999). The Handbook of International Financial Terms. ISBN 9780198294818. Sterling (UK).: The name given to the currency of the United Kingdom (cf. cable). Also called pound sterling or pounds.

[10] "Foreign and Commonwealth Office country profiles: British Antarctic Territory". Archived from the original on 2003-09-02.

[11] "Foreign and Commonwealth Office country profiles: British Indian Ocean Territory". Archived from the original on October 16, 2007.

[12] "Foreign and Commonwealth Office country profiles: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands". 19 February 2024.

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v t e Currency units named pound, lira, or similar
Circulating	Egyptian pound Lebanese pound Pound sterling Alderney pound Falkland Islands pound Gibraltar pound Guernsey pound Jersey pound Manx pound Saint Helena pound South Sudanese pound Sudanese pound Syrian pound Turkish lira
Local alternative currency	Bristol pound Brixton pound Exeter pound Lewes pound Liverpool pound Stroud pound Totnes pound
Defunct	Aeginetan mina AM-Lira Angevin pound Attic mina Australian pound Bahamian pound Bermudian pound Biafran pound British West African pound Byzantine litra Canadian pound Connecticut pound Cypriot pound Delaware pound Fijian pound French livre Livre parisis Livre tournois French colonial livre Guadeloupe livre Haitian livre New France livre Saint Lucia livre Gambian pound Georgia pound Ghanaian pound Irish punt Israeli lira Italian lira Italian East African lira Italian Somaliland lira Jaca pound Jamaican pound Japanese government-issued Oceanian pound Jersey livre Libyan pound Lombardo-Venetian lira Luccan lira Luxembourg livre Malawian pound Maltese pound Maryland pound Massachusetts pound New Brunswick pound New Guinean pound New Hampshire pound New Jersey pound New York pound New Zealand pound Newfoundland pound Nigerian pound North Carolina pound Nova Scotian pound Ottoman lira Palestine pound Papal lira Parman lira Pennsylvania pound Peruvian libra Pound Scots Prince Edward Island pound Rhode Island pound Rhodesian pound Rhodesia and Nyasaland pound Roman pound Sammarinese lira Sardinian lira Solomon Islands pound South Carolina pound Southern Rhodesian pound South African pound South West African pound Tongan pound Tripolitanian lira Tuscan lira Vatican lira Venetian lira Virginia pound Western Samoan pound Zambian pound
Historical antecedents (mass)	Roman pound (libra) Moneyer's pound (England) Grzywna (Grivna)
See also	Pound sign (£) Dinar Pound (mass) (℔) Roman currency Carolingian monetary system £sd

Authority control databases
National	Germany
Other	Historical Dictionary of Switzerland

Countries and territories currently using currency units named "pound"

Historical currencies

Currencies of the former British colonies in America

See also

Notes

References