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Dirham or dirhem is a unit of currency in several Arab nations, and formerly the related unit of mass (the Ottoman dram
Dram (unit)

The dram was historically both a coin and a weight. Currently it is both a small mass in the Apothecaries' system of weights and a small imperial unit of volume....
) in the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299?1923. It was Treaty of Lausanne by the Republic of Turkey, which was officially proclaimed on October 29, 1923....
. The name derives from the Greek currency drachma.

currency units include:

n to the Romans as a drachm
Ancient Roman units of measurement

The ancient Roman units of measurement were built on the ancient Greek units of measurement with ancient Egyptian units of measurement, Ancient Hebrew units of measurement, and Ancient Mesopotamian units of measurement influences....
, the dirhem was a unit of weight used across North Africa, the Middle East, and Persia, with varying values.

In the late Ottoman Empire (Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish language

Ottoman Turkish is the variety of the Turkish language that was used as the administrative and literary language of the Ottoman Empire. It contains extensive borrowings from Arabic language and Persian language languages and was written in a variant of the Arabic script....
 ????), the standard dirhem was 3.207 g
Gram

The gram , ; symbol g, is a Physical unit of mass.Originally defined as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to the cube of the hundredth part of a metre, and at the temperature of melting ice" , a gram is now defined as one one-thousandth of the SI base unit, the kilogram, or Scientific notation kg, which itself is...
; 400 dirhem equal one oka
Oka (measure)

The oka, okka, or oke was an Ottoman Empire measure of mass, equal to 400 dirhams . Its value varied, but it was standardized in the late empire as 1.2829 kilograms....
.

In Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
 in 1895, it was equivalent to 47.661 troy grains (3.088 g
Gram

The gram , ; symbol g, is a Physical unit of mass.Originally defined as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to the cube of the hundredth part of a metre, and at the temperature of melting ice" , a gram is now defined as one one-thousandth of the SI base unit, the kilogram, or Scientific notation kg, which itself is...
).

orically, the word "dirham" is derived from the name of a Greek coin, the Drachma (d?a?µ?); the Greek-speaking Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire and Eastern Roman Empire are conventional names used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on its capital of Constantinople....
 controlled the Levant
Levant

The Levant describes, traditionally, the Eastern Mediterranean at large, but can be used as a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia formed by the lands bordering the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean, roughly bounded on the north by the Taurus Mountains, on the south by the Arabian Desert, and on the west by the M...
 and traded with Arabia, circulating the coin there in pre-Islamic times and afterward.






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Dirham or dirhem is a unit of currency in several Arab nations, and formerly the related unit of mass (the Ottoman dram
Dram (unit)

The dram was historically both a coin and a weight. Currently it is both a small mass in the Apothecaries' system of weights and a small imperial unit of volume....
) in the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299?1923. It was Treaty of Lausanne by the Republic of Turkey, which was officially proclaimed on October 29, 1923....
. The name derives from the Greek currency drachma.

Currency units

The currency units include:
  • The Moroccan dirham
    Moroccan dirham

    The dirham is the currency of Morocco. The plural form is pronounced broken plural, although in French language and English language "dirhams" is commonly used....
  • The United Arab Emirates dirham
    United Arab Emirates dirham

    The dirham is the currency of the United Arab Emirates. The ISO 4217 code for the United Arab Emirates dirham is AED. Unofficial abbreviations include DH or Dhs....
  • 1/1000 of the Libyan dinar
    Libyan dinar

    The dinar is the currency of Libya. Its ISO 4217 code is "LYD". The dinar is subdivided into 1000 dirham . It was introduced in 1971 and replaced the Libyan pound at par....
  • 1/100 of the Qatari riyal
    Qatari riyal

    The riyal is the currency of Qatar. It is divided into 100 dirham and is abbreviated as either QR or ?.? ....
  • 1/10 of the Jordanian dinar
    Jordanian dinar

    The dinar is the currency of Jordan. The dinar is divided into 10 dirham, 100 qirsh or 1000 fils .The Jordanian dinar also circulates in West Bank together with the Israeli new sheqel....
  • The dirham, spelt 'diram,' is 1/100 of the Tajikistani somoni
    Tajikistani somoni

    The somoni is the currency of Tajikistan. It is subdivided into 100 diram . The currency is named after the father of the Tajikistan nation, Ismail Samani ....
    .


Unit of mass

Known to the Romans as a drachm
Ancient Roman units of measurement

The ancient Roman units of measurement were built on the ancient Greek units of measurement with ancient Egyptian units of measurement, Ancient Hebrew units of measurement, and Ancient Mesopotamian units of measurement influences....
, the dirhem was a unit of weight used across North Africa, the Middle East, and Persia, with varying values.

In the late Ottoman Empire (Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish language

Ottoman Turkish is the variety of the Turkish language that was used as the administrative and literary language of the Ottoman Empire. It contains extensive borrowings from Arabic language and Persian language languages and was written in a variant of the Arabic script....
 ????), the standard dirhem was 3.207 g
Gram

The gram , ; symbol g, is a Physical unit of mass.Originally defined as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to the cube of the hundredth part of a metre, and at the temperature of melting ice" , a gram is now defined as one one-thousandth of the SI base unit, the kilogram, or Scientific notation kg, which itself is...
; 400 dirhem equal one oka
Oka (measure)

The oka, okka, or oke was an Ottoman Empire measure of mass, equal to 400 dirhams . Its value varied, but it was standardized in the late empire as 1.2829 kilograms....
.

In Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
 in 1895, it was equivalent to 47.661 troy grains (3.088 g
Gram

The gram , ; symbol g, is a Physical unit of mass.Originally defined as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to the cube of the hundredth part of a metre, and at the temperature of melting ice" , a gram is now defined as one one-thousandth of the SI base unit, the kilogram, or Scientific notation kg, which itself is...
).

History

Historically, the word "dirham" is derived from the name of a Greek coin, the Drachma (d?a?µ?); the Greek-speaking Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire and Eastern Roman Empire are conventional names used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on its capital of Constantinople....
 controlled the Levant
Levant

The Levant describes, traditionally, the Eastern Mediterranean at large, but can be used as a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia formed by the lands bordering the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean, roughly bounded on the north by the Taurus Mountains, on the south by the Arabian Desert, and on the west by the M...
 and traded with Arabia, circulating the coin there in pre-Islamic times and afterward. It was this currency which was initially adopted as an Arab word; then near the end of the 7th century the coin became an Islamic currency bearing the name of the sovereign and a religious verse. The dirham was struck in many Mediterranean countries
History of the Mediterranean region

The history of the Mediterranean region is the history of the interaction of the cultures and people of the lands surrounding the Mediterranean Sea —the central superhighway of transport, trade and cultural exchange between diverse peoples....
, including Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
, and could be used as currency in Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
 between the 10th and 12th centuries.

Compare the Armenian dram
Armenian dram

The dram is the monetary unit of Armenia. It is subdivided into 100 luma . The word "dram" translates into English language as "money", and is cognate with the Greek drachma....
 for a currency whose name bears a similar origin. Also compare dinar
Dinar

File:Dinar map.pngThe Dinar is the name of the official currency in several countries. The Gold Dinar was a coin dating back to the early days of Islam, issued by many rulers, and the Islamic gold dinar is a modern revival of it as a coin or unit of account, separate from the currencies listed below....
 for another currency circulated in the Muslim world but originating with the Romans.

See also

  • Dinar
    Dinar

    File:Dinar map.pngThe Dinar is the name of the official currency in several countries. The Gold Dinar was a coin dating back to the early days of Islam, issued by many rulers, and the Islamic gold dinar is a modern revival of it as a coin or unit of account, separate from the currencies listed below....
  • Gold Dinar
    Gold Dinar

    A Gold Dinar is a gold coin first issued in 77 Islamic calendar by Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan I. The name ?dinar? is derived from denarius, a Roman currency....