100 dinars back. Photo courtesy of National Bank of Serbia ([1])

100 dinars. Photo courtesy of National Bank of Serbia ([2])

The Serbian dinar is the official currency of Serbia, one of the two republics that comprise Serbia-Montenegro. The autonomous province Kosovo and Metohia and Montenegro have both been using the euro for several years as of 2004, prior to which they shared the Yugoslav dinar with Serbia. The international currency code ISO 4217 for the Serbian dinar is CSD, and the three-digit identifier is 891. A dinar equals 100 para. As of March 24, 2005 the United States dollar is exchanged for 62.0313 Serbian dinars, and the Euro for 80.9570 dinars.

Coins currently produced are 50 para; 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 dinar coins [4].

Banknotes currently produced are 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 5000 dinar [5]

The illustrations feature the 2003 Nikola Tesla banknotes

History

The first mention of a "Serbian dinar" dates back to the reign of Stefan the First-Crowned Nemanjic in 1214. Up to the fall of Despot Stefan Lazarevic in 1459, most Serbian rulers minted dinars. The coin was an important symbol of Serbian statehood in the Middle Ages. Medieval money was struck exclusively in silver due to restrictions on gold, characteristic in Medieval Europe.

A coin minted by Dušan in 1346 on the occasion of his coronation. (Photo courtesy of the National Bank of Serbia [3])

Following the Ottoman conquest, different foreign currencies were used up to the mid 19th century. The Ottomans operated several coin mints throughout Serbia in Novo Brdo , Kucajna and Belgrade. Today's hundredth of a dinar in Serbia is the para, named after the last Turkish circulated silver coins (from the Arabic bara, silver).

The 19th century rules of Karađorđe and Prince Miloš Obrenović also saw circulation of many different currencies from all over Europe, 43 different kinds: 10 gold, 28 silver and 5 copper ones. Following the liberation from Turkish domination, steps were taken towards the establishment of an independent monetary system.

Faced with multiple currencies in circulation, Prince Mihailo Obrenović ordered that a Serbian national currency be minted. The new coins of copper alloy were denominated in 1, 5 and 10 paras. The obverse sides featured the portrait of the prince and the year of issue, 1868. The silver dinar was struck only in 1875. It featured Prince Milan Obrenović, in denominations of 50 paras, 1 and 2 dinars. The first gold coins were issued in 1879, with a value of 20 dinars. King Milan's coronation in 1882 called for the issue of gold coins in denominations of 10 and 20 dinars, popularly called milandor (French Milan d'Or (Milan of Gold)).

National Bank of Serbia

The National Bank of Serbia is the official bank of Serbia. It has had many governors since 1884. See List of governors of national banks of Serbia and Yugoslavia.

Hyperinflation

500 billion dinar note

Hyperinflation occurred in Serbia in 1993 due to an economic embargo. The largest banknote in circulation had a nominal value of 500 billion dinars.

External links

• National Bank of Serbia