Azerbaijani manat
Encyclopedia
The Manat is the currency
Currency
In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...

 of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

. It is subdivided into 100 qəpik. The word manat
Manat
Manat may refer to* Azerbaijani manat, unit of currency in Azerbaijan* Turkmenistani manat, unit of currency in Turkmenistan* The designation of the Soviet ruble in both Azerbaijani and Turkmen* Manāt, the goddess of fate and destiny in pre-Islamic Arabia...

is borrowed from "moneta" (coin) which is pronounced as "maneta". Manat was also the designation of the Soviet ruble
Soviet ruble
The Soviet ruble or rouble was the currency of the Soviet Union. One ruble is divided into 100 kopeks, ....

 in both the Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...

 and Turkmen
Turkmen language
Turkmen is the national language of Turkmenistan...

 languages.

The Azerbaijani manat symbol, , is currently not encoded in Unicode
Unicode
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...

, and m, man., can be used as a substitute for the manat symbol.

First Manat, 1919-1923

The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic
Azerbaijan Democratic Republic
The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was the first successful attempt to establish a democratic and secular republic in the Muslim world . The ADR was founded on May 28, 1918 after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917 by Azerbaijani National Council in...

 and its successor the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic issued their own currency between 1919 and 1923. The currency was called the manat (منات) in Azeri
Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...

 and the ruble (рубль) in Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...

, with the denominations written in both languages (and also in French) on the banknotes. The manat replaced the first Transcaucasian ruble
Transcaucasian ruble
The ruble , manat or maneti was the currency of both Transcaucasian states, the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic and the Transcaucasian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic.-First Transcaucasian ruble:...

 at par and was replaced by the second Transcaucasian ruble after Azerbaijan became part of the Transcaucasian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic. No subdivisions were issued, and the currency only existed as banknotes.

Banknotes

The Democratic Republic issued notes in denominations of 25, 50, 100, 250 and 500 manat, whilst the Soviet Socialist Republic issued notes in denominations of 5; 100; 1,000; 5,000; 10,000; 25,000; 50,000; 100,000; 250,000; 1 million and 5 million manat.

Second Manat, 1992-2006

The second manat was introduced on 15 August 1992. It had the ISO 4217
ISO 4217
ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Standards Organization, which delineates currency designators, country codes , and references to minor units in three tables:* Table A.1 – Current currency & funds code list...

 code AZM and replaced the Soviet ruble
Soviet ruble
The Soviet ruble or rouble was the currency of the Soviet Union. One ruble is divided into 100 kopeks, ....

 at a rate of 10 rubles to 1 manat.

From early 2002 to early 2005, the exchange rate was fairly stable (varying within a band of 4770–4990 manat per US dollar
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

). Starting in the spring of 2005 there was a slight but steady increase in the value of the manat against the US dollar; the reason most likely being the increased flow of petrodollar
Petrodollar
A petrodollar is a United States dollar earned by a country through the sale of petroleum. The term was coined by Ibrahim Oweiss, a professor of economics at Georgetown University, in 1973...

s into the country, together with the generally high price of oil on the world market. At the end of 2005, one dollar was worth 4591 manat. Banknotes below 100 manat had effectively disappeared by 2005, as had the qəpik coins.

Coins

Coins were issued in denominations of 5, 10, 20 and 50 qəpik, dated 1992 and 1993. Although brass
Brass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...

 and cupro-nickel were used for some of the 1992 issues, later issues were all in aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....

.

Banknotes

The following banknotes were issued for this currency
  • 1, 5, 10, 250 manat (all first issued in 1992)
  • 50, 100, 500, 1000 manat (all first issued in 1993)
  • 10,000 manat (first issued in 1994)
  • 50,000 manat (first issued in 1996)

Banknotes with denominations from 1 to 250 manat featured Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...

's Maiden Tower
Maiden Tower (Baku)
The Maiden Tower or also known locally as Giz Galasi located in the Old City, Baku in Azerbaijan is an ancient tower with cultural affinity corroborating the presence Zoroastrians, Sassanians, Arabs, Persians, Shirvanis, Ottomans, and Russians...

.

Third Manat, 2006

On 1 January 2006, a new manat (ISO 4217 code AZN, also called the "manat (national currency)") was introduced at a value of 5,000 old manat. Since 1 October 2005, prices have been indicated both in new manats and in old manats to ease transition. Coins denominated in qəpik, which had not been used from 1993 onwards due to inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...

, have been reintroduced with the redenomination.

The former manat (ISO code 4217 AZM) remained valid till 31 December 2006. http://publications.europa.eu/code/en/en-5000700.htm

Coins

Coins in circulation are 1, 3, 5, 10, 20 and 50 qəpik (the latter being bimetallic, similar to the €2 coin
Euro coins
There are eight euro coin denominations, ranging from one cent to two euros . The coins first came into use in 2002. They have a common reverse, portraying a map of Europe, but each country in the eurozone has its own design on the obverse, which means that each coin has a variety of different...

, and the lower denominations closely resembling the size and shape of various euro cent coins).

Banknotes

Banknotes in circulation are 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 manat. They were designed by Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

n Robert Kalina
Robert Kalina
Robert Kalina from the National Bank of Austria created the T 382 design, which was the winning design of the 1996 competition for the art shown on the euro banknotes. Kalina's design was chosen by the EMI Council on 3 December 1996...

, who was also responsible for the current Euro banknotes. The notes look quite similar to those of the euro and the choice of motifs was inspired by the euro banknotes.
Banknotes of the Third Manat
Image Value Dimensions Main Colour Description
Obverse Reverse Theme Obverse Reverse
1 manat 120 × 70 mm Grey Culture Azerbaijani folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....

 instruments (daf
Daf
A daf is a frame drum used as a musical instrument in popular and classical music. The term daf is used in Iran / Kurdistan for a large drum that has a series of four interlinked rings in the frame. Daf is mostly used in Middle East, Iran, Armenia, Pakistan, Turkey, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan and ...

, kamancheh
Kamancheh
The kamānche or kamāncha is a Persian bowed string instrument related to the bowed rebab, the historical ancestor of the kamancheh and also to the bowed lira of the Byzantine Empire, ancestor of the European violin family. The strings are played with a variable-tension bow: the word "kamancheh"...

, tar
Tar (lute)
The tār is a long-necked, waisted Iranian instrument. It has been adopted by other cultures and Azerbaijan. The word tar itself means "string" in Persian, though it might have the same meaning in languages influenced by Persian or any other branches of Iranian languages like Kurdish...

)
Ornaments of ancient Azerbaijani carpets
5 manat 127 × 70 mm Orange Writing and literature Ancient writers, poets, and books from Azerbaijan, with a written excerpt of the national anthem and letters from the contemporary Azerbaijani alphabet
Azerbaijani alphabet
In the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani alphabet refers to a Latin alphabet used for writing the Azerbaijani language. This superseded a previous versions based on Cyrillic and Arabic scripts....

Rock drawings of Gobustan, samples of Old Turkic script
10 manat 134 × 70 mm Blue History Old Baku, the Palace of the Shirvanshahs
Palace of the Shirvanshahs
Palace of the Shirvanshahs is the biggest monument of the Shirvan-Absheron branch of the Azerbaijan architecture, situated in the Inner City of Baku...

 and the Maiden Tower
Maiden Tower (Baku)
The Maiden Tower or also known locally as Giz Galasi located in the Old City, Baku in Azerbaijan is an ancient tower with cultural affinity corroborating the presence Zoroastrians, Sassanians, Arabs, Persians, Shirvanis, Ottomans, and Russians...

 against a background of the Icheri Sheher wall
Ornaments of ancient Azerbaijani carpets
20 manat 141 × 70 mm Green Karabakh
Karabakh
The Karabakh horse , also known as Karabakh, is a mountain-steppe racing and riding horse. It is named after the geographic region where the horse was originally developed, Karabakh in the Southern Caucasus, an area that is de jure part of Azerbaijan but the highland part of which is currently...

Signs of power (a sword, a helmet and a shield) Symbol of peace (harybulbul)
50 manat 148 × 70 mm Yellow History and future Youth, stairs (as a symbol of progress), the sun (as a symbol of force and light) and chemical and mathematical symbols (as signs of science) Ornaments of ancient Azerbaijani carpets
100 manat 155 × 70 mm Mauve Economy and development Architectural symbols from antiquity up to today, the manat currency symbol () and symbols of economic growth Ornaments of ancient Azerbaijani carpets

See also

  • Central Bank of Azerbaijan
  • Turkmen manat
  • Economy of Azerbaijan
    Economy of Azerbaijan
    Azerbaijan is an economy that has completed its post-Soviet transition into a major oil based economy , from one where the state played the major role...

  • Banking in Azerbaijan
    Banking in Azerbaijan
    The Central Bank of Azerbaijan is the central bank of Azerbaijan which is charged with regulating the money supply, circulating currency, and regulating the commercial banks of the country. However, the banking system in Azerbaijan is small relative to GDP and ineffective in capital allocating. An...


External links

Der Standard article on the redenomination
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