Afghan afghani - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

This article refers to the currency. For other uses, see Afghani
Afghani
Afghani may refer to:*The Afghani, official currency of Afghanistan.*The Pashto language, which is also referred to as Afghani or Afghani language.*Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, a Muslim nationalist and modernist in the late 19th century....

.

The Afghani (sign

Currency sign

A currency sign is a graphic symbol used as a shorthand for a currency's name, especially in reference to amounts of money. They typically employ the first letter or character of the currency, sometimes with minor changes such as ligatures or overlaid vertical or horizontal bars...

: Afs; Pashto

Pashto language

Pashto , known as Afghani in Persian and Pathani in Punjabi , is the native language of the indigenous Pashtun people or Afghan people who are found primarily between an area south of the Amu Darya in Afghanistan and...

/Persian

Dari (Eastern Persian)

Dari or Fārsī-ye Darī in historical terms refers to the Persian court language of the Sassanids. In contemporary usage, the term refers to the dialects of modern Persian language spoken in Afghanistan, and hence known as Afghan Persian in some Western sources. It is the term officially recognized...

: افغانۍ; code

ISO 4217

ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Standards Organization, which delineates currency designators, country codes , and references to minor units in three tables:* Table A.1 – Current currency & funds code list...

: AFN) is the currency

Currency

In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...

of Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

. It is notionally subdivided into 100 pul (پول), although there are no pul coins in circulation.

Original Afghani (1925-2003)

The first Afghani (ISO 4217

ISO 4217

code: AFA) was introduced in 1925. In addition to being subdivided into 100 pul, 20 Afghani were equal to the amani. The rate of conversion from the rupee is sometimes quoted as 1 Afghani = 1.1 rupee, based on the silver contents of the last rupee coins and the first Afghani coins. The Afghani initially contained 9 grams of silver.

Except during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

Afghanistan's foreign exchange rate has been freely determined by market forces. However, for some periods, a dual exchange rate regime existed in Afghanistan: an official exchange rate which was fixed by the Afghan Central Bank

Central bank

A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is a public institution that usually issues the currency, regulates the money supply, and controls the interest rates in a country. Central banks often also oversee the commercial banking system of their respective countries...

, and a free market

Free market

A free market is a competitive market where prices are determined by supply and demand. However, the term is also commonly used for markets in which economic intervention and regulation by the state is limited to tax collection, and enforcement of private ownership and contracts...

exchange rate which was determined by the supply and demand forces in Kabul's money bazaar

Bazaar

A bazaar , Cypriot Greek: pantopoula) is a permanent merchandising area, marketplace, or street of shops where goods and services are exchanged or sold. The term is sometimes also used to refer to the "network of merchants, bankers and craftsmen" who work that area...

called Saraye Shahzada. For example, in order to avoid the seasonal fluctuations in the exchange rate, a fixed exchange rate was adopted in 1935 by the Bank-e Milli

Banke Millie Afghan

Bank-e- Millie Afghan is the first and foremost banks in Afghanistan, established in 1933. Bank-e- Millie Afghan introduced the banking system in Afghanistan....

, which was then responsible for the country's exchange rate system and official reserves. Bank-e Millie agreed to exchange the Afghanis at 4 Afs against 1 Indian Rupee

Indian rupee

The Indian rupee is the official currency of the Republic of India. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India....

in 1935. After the establishment of Da Afghanistan Bank

Da Afghanistan Bank

The Afghanistan Bank is the central bank of Afghanistan. It regulates all the banking and money handling operations in Afghanistan.Da Afghanistan Bank is one of the leading & government recognized bank of Afghanistan which was established on 1939....

as the Central Bank

Central bank

of Afghanistan, such a preferential official fixed exchange rate continued to be practiced. Although Da Afghanistan Bank tried to keep its official rate close to the Saraye Shahzada's exchange rate, the gap between the official and free-market exchange rates widened in the 1980s and during the civil war.

Since 2002, Da Afghanistan Bank has adopted a floating exchange rate

Floating exchange rate

A floating exchange rate or fluctuating exchange rate is a type of exchange rate regime wherein a currency's value is allowed to fluctuate according to the foreign exchange market. A currency that uses a floating exchange rate is known as a floating currency....

regime and has let the exchange rate to be determined freely by market forces.

The Afghani exchange rate vis-à-vis

Vis-à-vis

Vis-à-vis may refer to:* Vis-à-vis * "Vis à Vis" , an episode of Star Trek: Voyager...

the U.S. dollar

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

since 1950 has been shown in the following table:

Afghani exchange rate (LCU in USD)
Date	Free-market exchange rate	Official exchange rate
1950	39.0
1960	40.8	17.7
1970	84.8	39.9
1980		39.2
2003	49.0	49.0
2010	45.2	45.2

Prior to the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan

War in Afghanistan (2001–present)

The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...

, warlords, political parties, foreign powers and forgers each made their own Afghani banknotes, with no regard to standardization or honouring serial numbers. In December 1996, shortly after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan's institutions, Ehsanullah Ehsan

Ehsanullah Ehsan

Mullah Ehsanullah Ehsan is a current Taliban spokesman and former member of the Taliban leadership. Originally, he was the chairman of the Taliban'sCentral Bank...

, the chairman of the Taliban's Central Bank, declared most Afghani notes in circulation to be worthless (approximately 100 trillion Afghani) and cancelled the contract with the Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

n firm that had been printing the currency since 1992. Ehsan accused the firm of sending new shipments of Afghani notes to ousted president Burhanuddin Rabbani

Burhanuddin Rabbani

Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani was President of the Islamic State of Afghanistan from 1992 to 1996. After the Taliban government was toppled during Operation Enduring Freedom, Rabbani returned to Kabul and served as a temporary President from November to December 20, 2001, when Hamid Karzai was...

in northern Takhar province

Takhar Province

Takhār is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It was established in 1964 when Qataghan Province was divided into three provinces: Baghlan, Kunduz and Takhar. It is in the north-east of the country. Its capital is Taloqan. Its salt mines are one of Afghanistan's major mineral resources...

. The exchange rate at the time of Ehsan's announcement was 21,000 Afghani to the U.S. dollar The Northern Alliance then had banknotes produced in Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

which were sold on the markets of Kabul

Kabul

Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...

at half their value.

In April, 2000, the Afghani traded at 6400 AFA per USD. By 2002, the Afghani was valued at 43,000 AFA per USD

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

. By 2009, the Afghani was valued at 45 AFA per USD

Coins

In 1925, bronze and brass 2, 5 and 10 pul, billon

Billon (alloy)

Billon is an alloy of a precious metal with a majority base metal content . It is used chiefly for making coins, medals, and token coins.The word comes from the French bille....

20 pul, silver ½ and 1 Afghani, and gold ½ and 1 amani coins were introduced, followed by silver 2½ Afghani and gold 2½ amani in 1926. In 1930, bronze and brass 1 and 25 pul were added, along with bronze 3 pul and cupro-nickel 10 and 20 pul in 1937.

In 1952, aluminium 25 pul and nickel-clad-steel 50 pul were introduced, followed by aluminium 2 and 5 Afghani in 1958 and nickel-clad-steel 1, 2 and 5 Afghani in 1963. In 1973, the Republic of Afghanistan issued brass-clad-steel 25 pul, copper-clad-steel 50 pul and cupro-nickel-clad-steel 5 Afghani coins. These were followed, between 1978 and 1980, by issues of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan

Democratic Republic of Afghanistan

The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was a government of Afghanistan between 1978 and 1992. It was both ideologically close to and economically dependent on the Soviet Union, and was a major belligerent of the Afghan Civil War.- Saur Revolution :...

consisting of aluminium-bronze 25 and 50 pul and cupro-nickel 1, 2 and 5 Afghani.

Banknotes

Between 1925 and 1928, Treasury notes were introduced in denominations of 5, 10 and 50 Afghani. In 1936, 2, 20 and 100 Afghani notes were added. The Bank of Afghanistan took over paper money production in 1939, issuing notes for 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 Afghani. The 2 and 5 Afghani notes were replaced by coins in 1958. In 1993, 5000 and 10,000 Afghani notes were introduced.

"A 'pothole cave

Cave

A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...

' or 'mouth of a shaft' (or Pit cave

Pit Cave

A pit cave, or vertical cave — or often simply called a pit or pot — is a type of natural cave which contains one or more significant vertical shafts rather than being predominantly a conventional horizontal cave passage. Pit caves typically form in limestone as a result of long-term erosion by...

) is said to be visible on the 10,000 Afghanis banknote as a limited dark area in the hillside above the ancient 'pol' or gateway at the ruins near Lashkar Gah. This is posibly the entrance to one of the man-made undergrounds at Qal'a-i-Bost."

New Afghani (2002-present)

Between October 7, 2002, and January 2, 2003, a new Afghani was introduced with the ISO 4217

ISO 4217

code AFN. No subdivisions have been issued. It replaced the previous Afghani at two distinct rates. Issues of the government of President Burhanuddin Rabbani

Burhanuddin Rabbani

were replaced at a rate of 1000 to the new Afghani, whilst the issues of Abdul Rashid Dostum

Abdul Rashid Dostum

Abdul Rashid Dostum is a former pro-Soviet fighter during the Soviet war in Afghanistan and is considered by many to be the leader of Afghanistan's Uzbek community and the party Junbish-e Milli-yi Islami-yi Afghanistan...

(the Northern Alliance) were replaced at a rate of 2000 to the new Afghani, The new Afghani was valued at 43 Afghani to the U.S. dollar. Prior to the reissue, there were more than 15 trillion Afghani in circulation after unrestrained printing under Taliban rule and during wars and occupation.

In October 2003, Afghan Central Bank

Da Afghanistan Bank

governor Anwar Ul-Haq Ahadi

Anwar ul-Haq Ahadi

Anwar ul-Haq Ahady is a prominent academic and politician in Afghanistan, who served as the nation's Finance Minister from December 2004 to February 5, 2009. Prior to that he served as head of Da Afghanistan Bank, the central bank of Afghanistan...

announced that Afghans should use their own Afghani currency in daily transactions rather than United States dollar

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

s or Pakistani rupee

Pakistani rupee

The rupee is the currency of Pakistan. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the State Bank of Pakistan, the central bank of the country. The most commonly used symbol for the rupee is Rs, used on receipts when purchasing goods and services. In Pakistan, the rupee is referred to as the...

s. This was in preparation for October 8 when all prices in the Afghan marketplace were to be specified in Afghani.

After depreciating during the last quarter of 2003/04, the Afghani has been appreciating steadily, gaining 8 percent against the U.S. dollar between end-March 2004 and end-July 2004. This appreciation, at a time of increasing inflation, appears to reflect a greater willingness by the population to use the Afghani as a medium of exchange and as a store of value. This trend appears to be attributable to the relative stability of the exchange rate since the introduction of the new currency, administrative measures aimed at promoting its use, such as the requirement that shopkeepers must price goods in Afghani. Donors are increasingly making payments in Afghani instead of U.S. dollars and this appears to be widely accepted.

Banknotes

In 2002, banknotes were introduced in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 Afghani. The 1, 2 and 5 Afghani notes were replaced by coins in 2005.

2002 Series http://www.centralbank.gov.af/pdf/Banknotes%20Specifications%20and%20Images.pdf
Image		Value	Dimensions	Main Colour	Description		Date of
Obverse	Reverse	Value	Dimensions	Main Colour	Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue
		1 Afghani	131 × 55 mm	Pink	Seal of Da Afghanistan Bank Da Afghanistan Bank The Afghanistan Bank is the central bank of Afghanistan. It regulates all the banking and money handling operations in Afghanistan.Da Afghanistan Bank is one of the leading & government recognized bank of Afghanistan which was established on 1939.... with Eucratides I Eucratides I Eucratides I Megas was one of the most important Greco-Bactrian kings, descendants of dignitaries of Alexander the Great. He uprooted the Euthydemid dynasty of Greco-Bactrian kings and replaced it with his own lineage... -era coin.	Mosque in Mazari Sharif	2002 (AH Islamic calendar The Hijri calendar , also known as the Muslim calendar or Islamic calendar , is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 lunar months in a year of 354 or 355 days. It is used to date events in many Muslim countries , and used by Muslims everywhere to determine the proper day on which to celebrate Islamic... 1381)	October 7, 2002
		2 Afghani		Blue		Paghman Gardens Paghman Gardens Paghman Gardens is a popular place near Afghanistan's capital city, Kabul. It is a place where people relax and spend the weekends there with friends and relatives...
		5 Afghani		Brown		Bala Hissar Bala Hissar Bala Hissar is an ancient fortress located in the city of Kabul, Afghanistan. The estimated date of construction is around the 5th century A.D. Bala Hissar sits to the south of the modern city centre at the tail end of the Kuh-e-Sherdarwaza Mountain...
		10 Afghani	136 × 56 mm	Yellow green	Ahmed Shah Durrasni mausoleum, Kandahar	Paghman Gardens Paghman Gardens Paghman Gardens is a popular place near Afghanistan's capital city, Kabul. It is a place where people relax and spend the weekends there with friends and relatives...
		20 Afghani	140 × 58 mm	Brown	Rowza Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni's Tomb	Arg King's Palace
		50 Afghani	144 × 60 mm	Dark green	Shah Do Shamira Mosque	Salang Pass
		100 Afghani	148 × 62 mm	Violet	Pul e Khishti Mosque	Arch of Bost
		500 Afghani	152 × 64 mm	Blue	Khwaja Abdullah Ansari Mosque in Herat	Kandahar Airport tower
		1000 Afghani	156 × 66 mm	Orange	Mazar Sharif Shrine of Hazrat Ali Shrine of Hazrat Ali The Shrine of Hazrat Ali, also known as the Blue Mosque, is a mosque in Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan. It is one of the reputed burial places of Ali...	Tomb of Ahmad Shah Durrani Ahmad Shah Durrani Ahmad Shah Durrani , also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī and born as Ahmad Khān, was the founder of the Durrani Empire in 1747 and is regarded by many to be the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan.Ahmad Khan enlisted as a young soldier in the military of the Afsharid kingdom and quickly rose... Baba

External links

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