The Euro
Austria
Belgium
Finland
France |
|
Germany
Greece
Ireland
Italy |
|
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Portugal
Spain |
The euro was first adopted on 1 January 1999. Euro notes
and coins came into circulation on 1 January 2002. One euro
is divided into 100 cents. The official abbreviation/code
for the euro is EUR.
Euro Conversion Rates
From the beginning, the value of each participating currency
was officially fixed against the euro as follows:
| Official Fixed Euro Rates |
| Country |
Original Currency |
to convert
to euro
divide by: |
to convert
from euro
multiply by: |
| Austria |
schilling (ATS) |
13.7603 |
13.7603 |
| Belgium |
franc (BEF) |
40.3399 |
40.3399 |
| Finland |
markka (FIM) |
5.94573 |
5.94573 |
| France |
franc (FRF) |
6.55957 |
6.55957 |
| Germany |
mark (DEM) |
1.95583 |
1.95583 |
| Ireland |
punt (IEP) |
0.787564 |
0.787564 |
| Italy |
lira (ITL) |
1936.27 |
1936.27 |
| Luxembourg |
franc (LUF) |
40.3399 |
40.3399 |
| Netherlands |
guilder (NLG) |
2.20371 |
2.20371 |
| Portugal |
escudo (PTE) |
200.482 |
200.482 |
| Spain |
peseta (ESP) |
166.386 |
166.386 |
Example:
- to convert 100 French francs to
euros, divide by 6.55957:
100 FRF = 100/6.55957 = 15.24 EUR
- to convert 100 euros to French
francs, multiply by 6.55957:
100 EUR = 100 x 6.55957 = 655.96 FRF
|
|
Coins
Each euro coin has the European Union flag on one
side, and on the reverse a national symbol of one of
the participating countries, such as the King of
Spain on Spanish euros and the Queen of the
Netherlands on Dutch coins. Any coin can be used in
any of the participating countries, regardless of
the national symbol. There are eight euro coins in
the following denominations: |
- 2 euros
- 1 euro
- 50 cents
- 20 cents
- 10 cents
- 5 cents
- 2 cents
- 1 cent
|
|
|
|
Notes
Euro notes feature images of gateways and bridges to
symbolise Europe's architectural heritage and the
idea of union. Euro notes are exactly the same in
all participating countries. There are seven euro
notes in the following denominations: |
 |
- 500 euros
- 200 euros
- 100 euros
- 50 euros
- 20 euros
- 10 euros
- 5 euros
|
|
|
|
The symbol for the euro is
like a round E with two horizontal parallel lines.
The inspiration for this symbol was the Greek letter
epsilon (a reference to Greece as the foundation of
European civilisation). The parallel lines are
intended to represent the euro's stability. |
|
