Each state has its own short currency designations. In Russia it is RUB, in America USD, in Europe - EUR. Surely many times have heard the abbreviation of the monetary unit - GBP. What kind of currency has such a reduction, which country does it belong to and what is its market rate today? In this article we will analyze this interesting question in detail. We also learn a little about the history of origin and little-known facts about GBP. The currency of which country, or rather countries, is hidden under this designation and why is it so named? Let's figure it out!
GBP: whose currency?
This abbreviation stands for Great Britain Pound. From here it is easy to understand that this currency is the national currency of Great Britain. The more familiar name for us is “pound sterling” or pound sterling. You can often hear abbreviations like "pound" or "British pound." So, we found out the main question regarding GBP - what kind of currency and which state it belongs to. It turned out that it operates in the whole kingdom - Great Britain. This means that GBP is traded not only in England, but also in other countries of the united kingdom - in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. In these territories, it is the official monetary unit.
However, this is not all that can be said about GBP. Which currency is parallel on the kingdom of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man? That's right, pound sterling. GBP also acts as legal tender in the Falkland Islands, St. Helena, Gibraltar, Tristan da Cugna and Ascension. Thus, the territory “covered” by the British pound is expanding significantly. But what is its origin and why is it precisely "pound" - a term also known as a unit of measure for mass? We’ll find out now.
GBP origin story
As often happens, there are several versions of the appearance of the generally accepted name "pound sterling". Consider the most believable and popular of them.
Version one
The theory of Walter Pinchebek is quite widespread. It reads as follows: the original British currency was called Easterling Silver, which can be decoded as "silver from the east / eastern lands." Its alloys of the 925th test were used in northern Germany for the manufacture of coins. But what does England have to do with it?
The fact is that the British called this area Easterling (5 cities that entered the Hanseatic League in the 11th century ) and conducted active trade with it. Naturally, these coins paid for the goods sold. In 1158, Henry the Second made the alloy of the 925th standard as a standard for coins in England. Gradually, the name used in everyday speech was reduced to Sterling Silver and simply Sterling. Since 1964, it was finally assigned to the national currency of England, and the state bank began issuing notes of the same name.
Second version
There is another version about the origin of GBP. What currency has become its "progenitor", according to another theory? According to some sources, in ancient England, silver coins were used, which in the amount of 240 pieces weighed exactly 1 tower pound (approximately 350 grams). Based on this criterion, the fullness of the coins and their authenticity / degree of deterioration were checked. If such an amount of silver had a weight of less than one pound, they were deemed false. Based on this, an expression appeared that later became widespread - "pound of pure silver" or "pound sterling" ("sterling" from Old English - "silver").
In modern Britain, the abbreviated name is most often used - pound, which means "pound". In official documents, the full name is written - "pound sterling", in exchange trading for the currency of Britain the word "sterling" has been fixed.
Issue and circulation of GBP
The national currency of Great Britain is issued not only in England, but also in other countries of the kingdom. Banknotes denominated in pounds sterling are also entitled to issue banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Moreover, they participate in commodity circulation throughout the UK. For example, Scottish pounds can be accepted as payment in England, and Irish in Scotland, etc.
However, this does not mean that they are legal tender even in the issuing countries themselves. In the strict sense, only banknotes issued by the Bank of England (on the territory of England and Wales) are considered legal tender, in connection with which in practice there are cases of refusal to accept Scottish or Irish pounds.
It is also interesting that the overseas territories of Britain and its crown lands also issue their own banknotes in their monetary units, which are equal to the pound sterling and bear similar names (Gibralthar, Manx, Jersey pound, etc.).
GBP and other currencies
The British pound is one of the most expensive currency units in the global currency market. As of April 30, 2014, one British pound was worth 60 rubles 12 kopecks. Over the year, its value increased by more than ten rubles (which is a fairly significant change). The average GBP purchase rate at exchange points is 59 rubles 22 kopecks, sales - 61 rubles 41 kopecks.
Currency traders, as well as those who sell / buy dollars for pounds sterling (and vice versa), will also be interested in GBP / USD currency rates . As of April 30, this ratio for the Central Bank of the Russian Federation was 1.68. Against the dollar, the British pound also rose significantly over the year. In April 2013, the rate was approximately 1 to 1.55. What is the situation with the GBP / EUR pair? Currently, the pound sterling / euro rate is approximately 1.22. A year ago, this ratio was lower - at 1.19, and last month amounted to 1.20 euros for one British pound.
Thus, lately we can talk about a clear and constant trend of growth and strengthening of the British pound against the currencies of other countries, in particular the US dollar, euro and ruble.
Conclusion
In this article, we found out a lot of interesting and useful information about GBP: what kind of currency and which countries it belongs to, what is the history of its origin and what are the current rules for its issue / circulation. In addition, we examined some of the most interesting GBP rates on the world currency market, and also compared current values with those that took place a year ago. We hope this information was new to you and allowed you to expand your knowledge regarding the British pound.