63) Coins/Currencies of the Middle East:
(i) the United Arab Emirates:
I visited the United
Arab Emirates in January 2007, along with my wife Sumita on a brief stop-over from a
trip to the UK. (Numismatics was, unfortunately, not one of my hobbies
then, otherwise, I would have spent more time on collecting coin/currency
specimens of the UAE).
Fortunately, I did save some coins and a ten dirham note
which inspired me to research the currencies of the Middle East. This is the
first of a series of a few posts that I am currently working on.
We had a very short
stay in the UAE so, the cab driver–cum-guide whom we had engaged, took us on a
whirlwind tour of the Emirates. All the beautiful Malls in Dubai, Abu Dhabi,
Sharjah etc., the beautiful world-famous buildings and the mosques with their
exquisite architecture, the drive through
the Desert, the Gold souks
(markets), not to mention the friendly people everywhere we went.We loved going to see the Dubai festival, with its endless stream of traffic. Sumita had a kind of non-veg "Paratha Roll",from an Egyptian food stall (the name of the Roll, we could not understand) and was immediately accosted by a visitor who said "I want to eat this. Where did you get this?" So we made our way back to the stall and through "sign language" the visitor made his food preference known to the food stall owner, thanking us profusely as we left.
I, on the other hand, being a vegetarian, could only find "Samosa-Chole" at a Pakistani Food Stall where the elderly Stall owner on learning that we were from Hyderabad, India, got a special "Samosa-Chole" dish made for me, as his family was originally from Hyderabad, India, before the Partition of India. We talked animatedly about various places in Hyderabad and I felt as if I had known him for ever. When I was leaving the stall, he was sad to see me go and shook hands vigorously, knowing that we would never meet again in our lifetimes.
I, on the other hand, being a vegetarian, could only find "Samosa-Chole" at a Pakistani Food Stall where the elderly Stall owner on learning that we were from Hyderabad, India, got a special "Samosa-Chole" dish made for me, as his family was originally from Hyderabad, India, before the Partition of India. We talked animatedly about various places in Hyderabad and I felt as if I had known him for ever. When I was leaving the stall, he was sad to see me go and shook hands vigorously, knowing that we would never meet again in our lifetimes.
Dirham
is the currency of the United Arab Emirates (AED) and Morocco. It consists of 1 Dirham sub-divided into 100 Fils (“Fils” is a unit of currency used in many
Arab Countries and is in the singular form in Arabic. Incidentally, the plural
form of Fils is “Fulus” which also refers to a small amount of money in many
varieties of Arabic, particularly Egyptian – there is an amusing case of one of
my friends holidaying in Egypt, where on sight-seeing trips they communicated
with the local vendors for their buys with “how many fell loose”? ).
The
Dirham was introduced in the United Arab Emirates in December 1971, when the
Qatari and Dubai Riyals were replaced by the Dirham at par.
The
name Dirham has Greek origins from the word “Drachmae” or “Drachm” meaning an
ancient Greek silver coin “the Drachma” or the “Didrachm” which was also a unit
of weight/currency used across North Africa, the Middle East and Persia.
Incidentally, a Drachma was also similar to the Jewish quarter-Shekel, a Franc
and the Italian Lira (in 1882). Drachma literally means “a handful” in Latin.
The Dirham is centuries old and through trade and use it has been in
circulation in several Arab or Berber states, since the Ottoman Empire (founded
by Osman I – or Othman I – in about 1300 A.D. and also refers to the Ottoman
Empire ruled by his illustrious successors) and is a related unit to the Ottoman
“dram” (weighing 3.207 gms, with 400 drams or dirhams being equal to one “Oka”.
The Arab Dirham (introduced since 1788) originally measured 44.4 grains troy,
in Egypt it measured 47.661 grains troy. Also, a small silver coin of the same
weight circulates in Morocco.
Before
1966, all the Emirates that later formed the United Arab Emirates were using
the Gulf Rupee as the circulating currency. Later, they, briefly introduced the
Saudi Riyal, and thereafter, from 1966, the Qatar and Dubai Riyals were in
circulation in all the emirates except Abu Dhabi.
In
Abu Dhabi, the Bahraini Dinar was in circulation, till it was replaced by the Dirham in December 1971.
The
Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates is the Central Bank of the
United Arab Emirates, which was established on 11th December 1980,
with its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Coinage:
Two Series of Fils have been in circulation in the United Arab Emirates – one
introduced in 1973 and the other in 1995 (sizes of some coins were reduced).
The Fils of the smaller denomination i.e. 1, 5, and 10 are made of bronze,
while the higher denominations i.e. 25 and 50 Fils and even the 1 Dirham coins are struck in cupro-nickel.
The Fils coins were the same size and composition as the corresponding Qatar
and Dubai Dirham coins, however, in 1995, the 50 Fils and 1 Dirham coins were
reduced in size, with the new 50 Fils being curve-equilateral-heptagonal
shaped.
The
1, 5 and 10 Fils are rarely used in general circulation and all transactions
made are normally rounded off to the nearest multiples of 25 Fils. Sometimes
there is a bit of confusion between the old 50 Fils coin and the new one Dirham
coin introduced in 1995 because both these coins are almost of the same size.
Also,
the Philippine one Peso coin, the Australian ten Cent coin, the Pakistani 5 Rupee coin, the Omani Baisa coin and the Moroccan Dirham among several other
World coins are almost the same size as the UAE Dirham and present an
“arbitrage” opportunity to unscrupulous persons to cheat unsuspecting users of
Dirhams.
The
value and numbers on the coins are written in Eastern Arabic numerals and the
text is Arabic. The Eastern Arabic Numerals (also called “Arabic-Indic
numerals” and “Arabic Eastern Numerals” are the symbols used to represent the
Hindu-Arabic numeral system in conjunction with the Arabic alphabet in Arabian
countries and has its own variations. These numbers are known as “Indian
numbers” in Arabic or “Indic numbers” in English. However, these numbers are
not to be confused with the Hindi numerals/numbers used in India. In most of
present day Middle-East or North-Africa, “Western Arabic numerals” (i.e.0 to 9
are used) except in the Magreb countries
i.e. Egypt and Sudan, as also in the UAE.
The
above is an image of a Obverse of one Dirham Coin (large sized) issued in “1989”. If you
read the Eastern Arabic numerals chart given above, you can easily read the
year given on the left hand side below the figure of the “jug” reading from
left to right. On the right of 1989 is mentioned the Islamic year “1409”. (The
present Gregorian calendar year 2012 corresponds to the Islamic years 1433-34
AH – Anno Hegirae).
This coin has been struck in cupro-nickel .
This coin has been struck in cupro-nickel .
The Reverse of the above coin with United Arab Emirates mentioned in Arabic on top
and English at the bottom and the value of the coin “one dirham” mentioned in
Arabic.
The
above is an image of the Obverse of a one Dirham coin (small sized) issued in “2005”. Such
small sized one dirham coins were issued from 1995 onwards. The corresponding Islamic
year mentioned on the coin in Eastern Arabic numerals is “1425”.
The Reverse of the above coin with United Arab Emirates mentioned in Arabic on top
and English at the bottom and the value of the coin “One Dirham” mentioned in
Arabic.
The
above is an image of a one Dirham coin (small sized) issued in “1995”. The
corresponding Islamic year mentioned on the coin in Eastern Arabic numerals is
“1415”.
The
above is an image of a fifty fils coin seven-sided (heptagonal) issued in
“1998”. It shows the picture of an oil drilling rig. The corresponding Islamic year mentioned on the coin in Eastern Arabic
numerals is “1419”.
The
other face of the coin, with United Arab Emirates mentioned in both Arabic (on
top) and English (below). The numeral “50” appears in Eastern Arabic with its
denominational value mentioned in words in Arabic as well.
1 Fil coins have been circulated with a palm tree on one side, 5 fils with a fish, 10 Fils with a dhow (boat), and 25 Fils with a gazelle on one side among other issues .
Banknotes:
1 Fil coins have been circulated with a palm tree on one side, 5 fils with a fish, 10 Fils with a dhow (boat), and 25 Fils with a gazelle on one side among other issues .
Banknotes:
Along
with the coins, in 1973, the United
Arab Emirates Currency Board issued notes in the denomination of 1, 5, 10, 50,
100 and 1000 dirhams.
Again
in 1982, a second series was introduced where the 1 and 1000 dirham notes were
withdrawn.
New
denominations of 500 dirham notes were introduced in 1983, 200 dirham in 1989 (old
notes are quite rare – as they were printed only in 1989, however, they have
been reintroduced in circulation in May 2008) and the 1000 dirham was
reintroduced in 2000.
The
present circulating notes introduced
in the 1982 Series are in the
following denominations and designs:
5
Dirhams: On the Front of the 5 Dirhams Banknote is depicted
the Sharjah Central “Souq”, also known as “Islamic
Souq”, the Blue “Souq” or the Central Market (“Souq” means “Market” in Arabic).
The Front of all denominations of these
Banknotes has the text written in Arabic, with Eastern Arabic numerals. The
Back of these Banknotes has the text written in English with numbers in Arabic
numerals:
On the Back of the 5 Dirhams Banknote is depicted the Imam Salem Al Mutawa Mosque, which was formerly known as “Al Jamaa Mosque” in Sharjah and presents a landscape in the Northern Emirates.
The dimensions of this Banknote are 157 mm x 67 mm and its colour is Brown. This Banknote
is dated “2001” and this is part of the series which was first issued in
1982.
10 Dirhams: This is a Souvenir which
I saved from the UAE trip was a 10 Dirhams Banknote, images of which are presented
here:
On the Front of the 10 Dirhams Banknote is depicted
the Khanjar which is the
traditional dagger of Oman.
Notice that in the above specimen, the Front text is written in Arabic with the denomination numerals of the Note “10” depicted in Eastern Arabic , while the serial number of the on the top left hand corner of the Note is in Eastern Arabic and on the bottom right Hand corner of the Note the serial number is in English. The issuing Authority’s particulars/signatures are also in Arabic. A falcon watermark is present on all the circulating Dirham Banknotes, so as to distinguish them from Banknotes which are not genuine.
Notice that in the above specimen, the Front text is written in Arabic with the denomination numerals of the Note “10” depicted in Eastern Arabic , while the serial number of the on the top left hand corner of the Note is in Eastern Arabic and on the bottom right Hand corner of the Note the serial number is in English. The issuing Authority’s particulars/signatures are also in Arabic. A falcon watermark is present on all the circulating Dirham Banknotes, so as to distinguish them from Banknotes which are not genuine.
On the Back of the 10 Dirhams Banknote is depicted a pilot farm project to reclaim the desert areas .
On
this face, the text is in English with the numbers, also, mentioned in
English. Next to the denomination of the note in English “TEN DIRHAMS” is mentioned
the year of issue of this note “2004” and this is part of the
series which was first issued in 1982.The dimensions of this Banknote are 147 mm x 62 mm and its colour is Green.
20 Dirhams (light blue – on the Front is the face of the Dubai Creek Golf and
Yacht Club, while the Back presents a “Samaa” or a "trading dhow"). These
trading Dhows are common on the Indo-Arabic trade route through the Arabian Sea
and are also seen on the post independence Indian issues of ten rupee notes for
more than 3 decades after Independence in 1947).
50 Dirhams: (purple – on the Front is an “Oryx” and the Back presents a
pre-Islamic fort in Ai-Ain).
100 Dirhams: (pink – on the Front is the Fahidi Fort and on the Back is the
Dubai World Trade Centre).
200 Dirhams: (green/brown – on the Front is the Zayed Sports City, while the Back presents the Central Bank of the UAE building).
500 Dirhams: On the Front of the 500 Dirhams Banknote is depicted
a “Saker” falcon ("Falco cherrug").
The
“Saker” falcon: This is a large species of falcon which breeds
from Eastern Europe across Asia to Manchuria. It is chiefly migratory except in
the Southernmost part of its range and winters in Ethiopia, the Arab Peninsula,
northern Pakistan and Western China. The name “Saker” is derived from the Arabic term “Saqr” meaning “falcon” and the Hindi word “cherrug” distorted from “Charg”
meaning a “female Saker”.
On the Back of the 500 Dirhams Banknote is depicted the Jumereirah Mosque, one of the best known mosques in the UAE.
The dimensions of this Banknote are 159 mm x 68 mm and its colour is Navy Blue. This Banknote is dated “2011” and this is part of
the series which was first issued in 1982.
1000 Dirhams: On the Front of the 1000 Dirham Banknote is the Qasr al-Hosn Palace.
The Qasr al-Hosn Palace (meaning "Palace Fort"): also known as the "White Fort" or "Old Fort", was constructed in 1761 as a conical watch-tower to defend the only fresh-water well in Abu Dhabi island, is the oldest stone building in the city of Abu Dhabi.
The Tower was expanded into a little fort in 1793 and became the permanent residence of the ruling Sheikh. It underwent a major expansion in the late 1930s and remained the Emir's palace and seat of government till 1966. Presently it houses a museum displaying artifacts and pictures representing the history of the country. It also has a display of weapons which were used over the centuries.
The dimensions of this Banknote are 163 mm x 70 mm and its colour is greenish blue/Brown. This Banknote is dated "2015" and is part of the Series which was first issued in 1976 and re-introduced in 2000.
Commemorative Coins:
In
1976, a commemorative gold coin in the 1000 dirham denomination was issued by
the Currency Board commemorating the “United Arab Emirates, 5th
National Day”.
Since
1981, commemorative coins have been issued by the Central Bank of the United
Arab Emirates in various denominations in cupro-nickel, gold, or silver.
Some of the old issues include: commemorating “the 15th Hijra Century “(1981), The “27th Chess Olympiad in Dubai” (1986), The “25th anniversary of the first offshore oil shipment from Abu Dhabi”(1987),”The 10th anniversary of United Arab Emirates University”( 1987), “Qualification of the UAE National Football Team to 1990 FIFA World Cup”(1990), “Commemoration of the late Sheikh Rashid Al Maktoum” (1992 – 1000 dirham gold coin, 500 dirham gold coin, 50 dirham silver coin), “The 10th Anniversary of the Central Bank of the UAE”(1992), the “20th Anniversary of the General Woman’s Union” (1995), the 30th anniversary of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan” (1996 – Gold and silver coins), “United Arab Emirates 25th National Day” (1996),35th Anniversary of “National Bank of Dubai” (1998), “50th Anniversary of UNICEF” (1998), “Sharjah the cultural Capital of the Arab World” (1998), “Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak” (the humanitarian personality of 1998), “Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan”(Islamic Personality of the year 1999), the 25th Anniversary of Dubai Islamic Bank (2000) etc.
Links:
1) Currency/Coinage of the Sultanate of Oman
2) Currencies of the Middle East (3): Kuwaiti Dinar and Fils
Some of the old issues include: commemorating “the 15th Hijra Century “(1981), The “27th Chess Olympiad in Dubai” (1986), The “25th anniversary of the first offshore oil shipment from Abu Dhabi”(1987),”The 10th anniversary of United Arab Emirates University”( 1987), “Qualification of the UAE National Football Team to 1990 FIFA World Cup”(1990), “Commemoration of the late Sheikh Rashid Al Maktoum” (1992 – 1000 dirham gold coin, 500 dirham gold coin, 50 dirham silver coin), “The 10th Anniversary of the Central Bank of the UAE”(1992), the “20th Anniversary of the General Woman’s Union” (1995), the 30th anniversary of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan” (1996 – Gold and silver coins), “United Arab Emirates 25th National Day” (1996),35th Anniversary of “National Bank of Dubai” (1998), “50th Anniversary of UNICEF” (1998), “Sharjah the cultural Capital of the Arab World” (1998), “Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak” (the humanitarian personality of 1998), “Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan”(Islamic Personality of the year 1999), the 25th Anniversary of Dubai Islamic Bank (2000) etc.
Links:
1) Currency/Coinage of the Sultanate of Oman
2) Currencies of the Middle East (3): Kuwaiti Dinar and Fils
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