Maldivian rufiyaa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Maldivian rufiyaa
[[Image:|126px|Maldivian Rufiyaa Bank Notes]] Rf. 1/- coin
ISO 4217 Code	MVR
User(s)	Maldives
Inflation	2.8%
Source	The World Factbook, 2017 est.
Subunit
1⁄100	laari
Symbol	Rf, MVR, ރ
Coins
Freq. used	25 laari, 50 laari, Rf. 1/-, Rf. 2/-
Rarely used	1, 5, 10 laari
Banknotes
Freq. used	Rf. 5/-, Rf. 10/-, Rf. 20/-, Rf. 50/-, Rf. 100/-, Rf. 500/-
Rarely used	Rf. 1,000/-, Rf. 5,000/-
Printer	De La Rue PLC

The Maldivian rufiyaa (Dhivehi: ދިވެހި ރުފިޔާ) is the official money used in the Maldives. Its symbol is Rf or ރ, and its international code is MVR. The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) is in charge of printing and managing this money.

One rufiyaa is made up of 100 smaller units called laari. The word "rufiyaa" comes from an old Sanskrit word, rūpya, which means "wrought silver". The value of the rufiyaa changes a bit compared to the US dollar. For example, in 2017, about 12.85 rufiyaa was equal to one US dollar.

History of Maldivian Money

The modern building of the Maldives Monetary Authority, which manages the rufiyaa.

For a long time, the Maldives used cowrie shells as money. These shells were traded even in the 13th century. Travelers like Ibn Battuta saw many ships exporting these shells. A single gold dinar was worth 400,000 shells!

Later, in the 17th and 18th centuries, a type of silver wire called lārin was used. These were imported from places like the Persian Gulf and India. This showed that the Maldives had strong trade connections. The first Sultan to put his own mark on this money was Ghaazee Muhammad Thakurufaanu al-Auzam.

Maldivian coins from the 17th and 18th century.

The first proper coins were introduced by Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar I (1648–1687). These coins were made of pure silver and were much neater. They were made in the capital city of Malé. The coins even said "King of Land and Sea, Iskandhar the Great" on them.

After silver, gold coins were used during Sultan Hassan Nooruddin's rule in 1787. He used two types of gold, one more valuable than the other. No one is quite sure how this gold was obtained.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, bronze coins called laari were made. Sultan Mohamed Imaadhudheen IV introduced what might have been the first machine-made coins, which looked much better. The last of these coins were made in England in 1913.

After that, the Maldives started using the Sri Lankan rupee. But in 1947, they began printing their own banknotes called rufiyaa, which had the same value as the rupee. In 1960, new laari coins were introduced, with 100 laari making one rufiyaa. In 1990, the international code for the Maldivian currency officially changed to MVR.

The Rufiyaa Symbol

The Maldivian Rufiyaa Symbol is created by adding a horizontal line to the Dhivehi Thaana letter 'Raa'.

The official symbol for the Maldivian Rufiyaa was introduced on July 3, 2022, by the Maldives Monetary Authority. The symbol looks like the letter "Ra" from the local Dhivehi alphabet, Thaana. This letter is the first letter in the word "Rufiyaa" in Dhivehi. A line is added to the letter to make it look like an "equal" sign, similar to other currency symbols.

The currency symbol has a bold, angled line crossed by two shorter, angled, thicker lines.

The symbol was designed by Mr. Hassan Shujau. It was chosen from 70 ideas submitted in a national competition.

Maldivian Coins

In 1960, Sultan Mohamed Fareed I ordered new coins from England. These coins came in values of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, and 50 laari. Instead of his own title, the Sultan used the National Emblem on the coins. These new coins started being used in February 1961.

The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) later introduced the Rf. 1/- coin in 1983. In 1984, a new set of coins came out, but it didn't include the 2 laari coin. In 1995, Rf. 2/- coins were introduced.

Today, you can find these coins in circulation: 1 laari, 2 laari, 5 laari, 10 laari, 25 laari, 50 laari, Rf. 1/-, and Rf. 2/-. In 2017, a new Rf. 2/- coin was introduced.

Maldivian Banknotes

Front of current Maldivian Rufiyaa banknotes.

Back of current Maldivian Rufiyaa banknotes.

In 1945, the Maldives Parliament decided to print their own banknotes. So, on September 5, 1948, banknotes for Rf. 1⁄2, Rf. 1/-, Rf. 2/-, Rf. 5/-, and Rf. 10/- were put into use. A few years later, in 1951, Rf. 50/- and Rf. 100/- banknotes were added.

A new series of banknotes was released in 1983. These included Rf. 2/-, Rf. 5/-, Rf. 10/-, Rf. 20/-, Rf. 50/-, and Rf. 100/-. In 1990, a Rf. 500/- banknote was added. The Rf. 2/- banknote was replaced by a coin in 1995.

In October 2015, to celebrate 50 years of independence, the Maldives Monetary Authority released a special Rf. 5,000/- banknote made of polymer (a type of plastic). They also introduced a whole new set of banknotes, including a new Rf. 1,000/- note. A Rf. 5/- banknote made of polymer was released in 2017.

The beautiful pictures on the banknotes were created by Maizan Hassan Manik and Abbaas (Bamboo).

See also

• Currency of Maldives
• Economy of Maldives
• Maldives Banknote Collection (1947-2022)