3/8/2007

I realize that there are no post about Japanese currencies. We all know that the currency is Yen but we don’t know what type of money they have. I had a first hand experience with money that at a glance you know I am a foreigner. I was in Chinatown, Montreal buying dried food stuff at this chinese store. The amount came up to 12.55 dollars. I stood there for at least 2 mins trying to figure out which is 5 cents and which is the 25 cent coins…cos they have the same size. God…how embarrasing, esp when the guy asked me if I am new in town :P So to save you from looking like a fool picking at those round coins on your palms while the vendor thumps his feet with impatience, here’s a post about the type of coins and monies that is part of the daily Japanese life.

Money is Japan is called Okane. It’s not pronounced as O-cane but as Oh-Kah-Neh. The Yen is the basic coin in Japan, just like a penny is to America or cents is to UK or any other commonwealth countries.

To me, I find that it is the coins that always sell us out in any foreign country – people can just tell that you’re new in the country by watching you count your pennies! So, I’m gonna focus on the coins right now. In Japan, the only coins that have a hole in them are the 5 Yen and the 50 Yen coins. The difference between them is that 5 Yen is yellow/gold, 50 Yen is silver. See below:

5 Yen

50 Yen

The 5Yen and 50Yen coins are pretty easy to distinguish from the other coins because they have a hole in them but to differentiate the two can take a little bit of time. But since the color for both are different, we just need to get that schematic process in our heads off that gold doesn’t mean higher value in this case. I know the 5 Yen is not made out of gold, it’s just that the copper content gives it a nice gold sheen. :)

Here are the rest of the coins. They are easier to know because each of them are engraved with huge digits of the coin’s denomination.

The old and new 500 Yen is still in circulation. So either one is still in used :) Although, I think they are quickly being replaced with the new one as time goes by.

The paper currency Japan uses ranges from 1000Yen to 10,000 Yen. The 2000 Yen paper currency was introduced in the year 2000 (how befitting!).

Source: Wikipedia; Japan Zone