Romanian leu
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The Romanian leu (plural: lei; ISO 4217 code ROL) is the national currency of Romania. One leu is subdivided into 100 bani (singular: ban).
The leu was established in 1880, following the founding of the National Bank of Romania.
While Moldova was a province of Romania (1918-1940), the Romanian leu circulated in that area. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the creation of the independent state of Moldova in 1993, the Moldovan leu, named after its Romanian predecessor, was established.
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Etymology
In the 17th century, Dutch thalers bearing a lion (leeuwendaalder) circulated in the Romanian states; they were often called lei (lions). The name was kept as a generic term for money, and became the offical name of the national currency in 1880.
History
After the Crimean War, a bimetallic currency was adopted, with the lei (franc) of 100 bani (centimes) as the unit of value. But after 1878 the Russian silver rouble was rated so highly as to drive the native coins out of circulation; and in 1889 Romania joined the Latin Monetary Union and adopted a gold standard. Besides the silver pieces worth 3/4, 1, 2 and 5 lei, gold coins of 5, 10 and 20 lei were used. Silver was legal tender only up to 50 lei. All taxes and customs dues were to be paid in gold, and, owing to the small quantities issued from the Romanian mint, foreign gold were current, especially French 20-franc pieces (equal at par to 20 lei), Turkish gold lire (22.70), old Russian imperials (20.60) and English sovereigns of (25.22). Besides bronze coins of less value than 1/2 tell, nickel pieces worth 5, 10 and 20 bani were authorized by a law of 1900.
1883_5lei_Romania.jpg
Banknotes
| Value | Year | Obverse | Reverse |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 lei | 1992 | Grigore Antipa | Danube Delta fauna |
| 500 lei | 1992 | Constantin Brâncuşi | sculptures of Brâncuşi |
| 1 000 lei | 1993 | Mihai Eminescu | Putna Monastery |
| 5 000 lei | 1993 | Avram Iancu | Densuş Church, Dacian Draco, gate of Alba Iulia |
| 10 000 lei | 1994 | Nicolae Iorga | Şuţu Palace |
| 50 000 lei | 1996 | George Enescu | The sphinx of Bucegi Mountains |
| 1 000 lei | 1998 | Mihai Eminescu | Ruins of Histria, linden tree flowers |
| 2 000 lei | 1999 | 1999 Sun eclipse | map of Romania |
| 5 000 lei | 1998 | Lucian Blaga | crucifix |
Current legal tender
As of December 2003, the following notes and coins are in circulation:
Coins
- 500 lei
- 1000 lei
- 5 000 lei
Banknotes
| Value | Reevaluated | Obverse portrait | Obverse flower | Reverse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 000 lei | 1 leu | Nicolae Iorga, historian | Milkweed gentian | Cathedral of Curtea de Argeş |
| 50 000 lei | 5 lei | George Enescu, composer | Carnation | Romanian Athenaeum |
| 100 000 lei | 10 lei | Nicolae Grigorescu, painter | Marshmallow | traditional house from Oltenia |
| 500 000 lei | 50 lei | Aurel Vlaicu, engineer | Edelweiss | Vlaicu II airplane design |
| 1 000 000 lei | 100 lei | Ion Luca Caragiale, playwright | Sweet violet | National Theatre of Bucharest (old building) |
| - | 500 lei | Mihai Eminescu, poet | Tilia | University Library of Iaşi |
The exchange rate is (as of December 2004): € 1 = 38 700 lei; US$ 1 = 28 900 lei; £ 1 = 56 200 lei. (Source: the Financial Info webpage at the website of the National Bank of Romania (http://www.bnro.ro/def_en.htm))
With the replacement by the New Turkish Lira of the old Turkish Lira, the Romanian Leu is now the least valued currency unit.
Revaluation
On July 1, 2005, the Romanian leu will be revalued at the rate of 1 new leu (RON) for 10,000 "old" lei (ROL). Thus, the leu will "drop" 4 zeroes.
Current money will continue to be legal tender until the end of 2006. Retailers must display prices in both old and new currency from March 1 2005 until mid 2006.
The new leu will be issued in notes of: 1 leu (10.000 old lei), 5 lei (50.000 old lei), 10 lei (100.000 old lei), 50 lei (500.000 old lei), 100 lei (1.000.000 old lei) and 500 lei (5.000.000 old lei - there is no 5.000.000 bill currently in circulation) and coins of: 1 ban (100 old lei), 5 bani (500 old lei), 10 bani (1000 old lei) and 50 bani (5000 old lei).
The new notes will be similar in size with the euro, so that machines will not need to be refitted when Romania switches to the euro.
External links
- www.bnro.ro - Banca Naţională a României (National Bank of Romania)
- Current legal tender pictures (http://www.bnro.ro/En/Ins/)
- www.denominare.ro (http://www.denominare.ro/common/htmls/en.htm) - The official site of the leu revaluation
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