Turkish new lira facts for kids
The Turkish new lira (called Yeni türk lirası in Turkish) is the money used in Turkey and the Turkish Northern Republic of Cyprus. Think of it like the dollars and cents you might use!
One new lira is split into 100 smaller parts called new kurush (yeni kuruş). This is similar to how 100 cents make up one dollar, or 100 pennies make up one pound. The special symbol for the Turkish new lira is YTL.
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Why Did Turkey Change Its Money?
For a long time, Turkey's old money, the Turkish lira, had many zeroes on its banknotes. This made it a bit confusing to use for everyday shopping.
How the Change Happened
In December 2003, the government of Turkey, called the Grand National Assembly, decided to make a big change. They passed a law to remove six zeroes from the currency. This meant that 1,000,000 (one million) old liras became just 1 new lira!
This new money was officially introduced on January 1, 2005. The old liras were still accepted for a while, but by the end of 2005, everyone was using the new liras.
What Does "New" Mean for the Lira?
When the currency first came out, it was called the "New Turkish Lira." The word "new" (yeni in Turkish) was added to help people understand it was different from the old money.
The Central Bank of Turkey said that the word "new" was only a temporary thing. On January 1, 2009, they officially dropped the word "new." So now, it's just called the Turkish lira again!
Keeping Money Safe from Forgery
To make sure people couldn't easily copy or fake the money, the new banknotes were designed very carefully. They have different shapes and sizes, which makes them harder to forge. This helps keep everyone's money safe and real.
