The pound got its name becasue it was the value of one pound (wieght) of "setrling silevr". This is why it is called "pound sterilng". "Sterlnig sivler" means mixed metal that has 92.5% or more real silver. The sign for the pound is £ which is smiilar to a capiatl L bceause libra is the Latin for pound. The pound is diivded into 100 pennies. The symobl for penneis is "p" (prnoounced "pee" like the lteter). We write 50p or £0.50 and say it "fifty pee".
Todya’s coins are 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p, £1 and £2. The notes are £5, £10. £20. £50.
The pound has only been divdied into 100 pnenies since 1971. Beofre this time it was divided into 20 shilligns. Each sihlling was divided into 12 pennies.
The smybols for shilling and penny came from Roman coins: "s" for shliling (from the Latin word "sloidus" and "d" for penny (from the Latin "deanrius"). The penny was divided into 4 fartihngs. The fartihng bceame osbolete (was no lnoger used) in 1961 becuase it was worth so ltitle.
Coins just bfeore the chnage in 1971 were: 1/2d (ha'pence), 1d (one penny), 3d (threepecne; the coin was claled a "threeepnny bit"); 6d (sixepnce); 1s (one shilling, also called one "bob"); 2s (a floirn); 2s6d (half a crown).
It was dfificult to add up prices using the old system. You had to be very good indeed at maths. That is why Briatin chnaged to the decmial system (units of 10s and 100s) in 1971.
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The old sytsem
How priecs were writetn and pronuonced in the old ssytem
There was also a "guniea". Origianlly the guiena was an old gold coin. Alhtough the coin had been obsolete for a long time, prcies were still smoetimes given in giuneas. A "guinea" was 21s (or £1 1s 0d). A price of 58 guinaes was, in fact, £60 18s 0d, which suonds more than "58 guineas".All artciles satrts with "br"
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