Etymology
The word manat derived from the word “Moneta” (Latin Monēta). In Roman mythology, “Monēta” was a title given to two separate goddesses: the goddess of memory, and was an epithet of Juno, called Juno Moneta. The latter’s name is a source of numerous words in English and other European languages, including the words “money” and “mint”. Manat was also the designation of the Soviet ruble in both the Azerbaijani and Turkmen languages.
First manat, 1919–1923
The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and its successor the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic issued their own currency between 1919 and 1923. The currency was called the manat (منات) in Azerbaijani and the ruble (рубль) in Russian, with the denominations written in both languages (and sometimes also in French) on the banknotes. The manat replaced the 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 following banknotes were issued for this currency
- 1, 5, 10, 250 manat (all first issued on 15 August 1992)
- 50, 100, 500, 1000 manat (all first issued in early 1993)
- 10,000 manat (first issued in August 1994)
- 50,000 manat (first issued in May 1996)
Banknotes with denominations from 1 to 250 manat featured Baku’s Maiden Tower.
Third manat, 2006
On 1 January 2006, a new manat (ISO 4217 code AZN, also called the “manat (national currency)”) was introduced at a ratio of 1 new manat to 5,000 old manat. From 1 October 2005, prices were indicated both in new manat and in old manat to ease the transition. Coins denominated in qəpik, which had not been used from 1993 onward due to inflation, were reintroduced with the re-denomination. The former manat (ISO code 4217 AZM) remained valid through 31 December 2006.
Symbo
The new banknotes and Azerbaijani Manat symbol, ₼, were designed by Robert Kalina in 2006, and the symbol was added to Unicode (U+20BC) in 2013, after failed addition proposals between 2008 and 2011.[3] The final Azerbaijani Manat symbol design was inspired by the design of the Euro sign (€), based on an initial proposal by Mykyta Yevstifeyev, and resembles a single-bar Euro sign rotated 90° clockwise. The manat symbol is displayed to the right of the amount.
Coins
Coins in circulation are 1, 3, 5, 10, 20 and 50 qəpik. Most coins closely resemble the size and shape of various euro coins. Most notably the bimetallic 50 qəpik (similar to the €2 coin) and the 10 qəpik (Spanish flower, like the 20 euro cent coin). Coins were first put into circulation during January 2006 and do not feature a mint year.
Source: Wikipedia