Serbian dinar

Dinar of King Stefan Dragutin.

The first mention of a "Serbian dinar" dates back to the reign of Stefan Nemanjić in 1214. Until the fall of Despot Stjepan Tomašević in 1459, most of the Serbian rulers minted silver dinar coins. The first Serbian dinars, like many other south-European coins, replicated Venetian grosso, including characters in Latin (the word 'Dux' replaced with the word 'Rex'). For many years it was one of the main export articles of medieval Serbia, considering the relative abundance of silver coming from Serbian mines. Venetians were wary of this, and Dante Alighieri went so far as to put the Serbian king of his time, Stephen Uroš II Milutin of Serbia, in Hell as forgerer (along with his Portuguese and Norwegian counterparts):

E quel di Portogallo e di Norvegia lì si conosceranno, e quel di Rascia che male ha visto il conio di Vinegia.

Following the Ottoman conquest, different foreign currencies were used up to the mid 19th century. The Ottomans operated coin mints in Novo Brdo, Kučajna and Belgrade. The subdivision of the dinar, the para, is named after the Turkish silver coins of the same name (from the Persian پاره pāra, "money, coin"). After the Principality of Serbia was formally established (1817) there were many different foreign coins in circulation. Eventually, Prince Miloš Obrenović decided to introduce some order by establishing exchange rates based on the groat (Serbian groš, French and English piastre, Turkish kuruş) as money of account. In 1819 Miloš published a table rating 43 different foreign coins: 10 gold, 28 silver, and 5 copper.[2]

After the last Ottoman garrisons were withdrawn in 1867, Serbia was faced with multiple currencies in circulation. Thus, prince Mihailo Obrenović ordered a national currency be minted. The first bronze coins were introduced in 1868, followed by silver in 1875 and gold in 1879. The first banknotes were issued in 1876. Between 1873 and 1894, the dinar was pegged at par to the French franc. The Kingdom of Serbia also joined the Latin Monetary Union.

In 1920, the Serbian dinar was replaced at par by the Yugoslav dinar, with the Yugoslav krone also circulating together.

Banknotes

Obverse and reverse of paper money (5 dinar) from the Kingdom of Serbia from World War I (1917), Museum in Smederevo, featuring Miloš Obilić

In 1876, state notes were introduced in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 50 and 100 dinars. These were followed by notes of the Chartered National Bank from 1884, with notes for 10 dinars backed by silver and gold notes for 50 and 100 dinars. Gold notes for 20 dinars and silver notes for 100 dinars were introduced in 1905. During World War I, silver notes for 50 and 5 dinars were introduced in 1914 and 1916, respectively. In 1915, stamps were authorized for circulation as currency in denominations of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 50 paras.

In 1941, the Yugoslav dinar was replaced, at par, by a second Serbian dinar for use in the German occupied Serbia. The dinar was pegged to the German reichsmark at a rate of 250 dinars = 1 Reichsmark. This dinar circulated until 1944, when the Yugoslav dinar was reintroduced by the Yugoslav Partisans, replacing the Serbian dinar at a rate of 1 Yugoslav dinar = 20 Serbian dinars.

The Serbian dinar replaced the Yugoslav dinar in 2006, when Yugoslavia ended after Montenegro declaration of independence. Montenegro and the Serbian disputed territory of Kosovo had already adopted the Deutsche Mark and later the euro when the mark was replaced by it in 2002. The Serbs in North Kosovo and the enclaves within it continue to use the dinar.[3][4]

Coins

Coins currently in circulation are 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 dinara coins. All coins feature identical inscriptions in Serbian, using the Cyrillic and Latin scripts. The 10 and 20 dinara coins are uncommon in circulation, as banknotes of the same value are used instead.

Coins of the Serbian dinar (2003–present)[5]
Image	Value	Technical parameters			Description			Date of
		Diameter	Mass	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse	minting	issue	withdrawal	lapse
	1 dinar	20 mm	4.34g	70% Cu, 12% Ni, 18% Zn	reeded	Denomination, relief of the building of the National Bank of Serbia, year of minting	Issuer’s symbols, logo of the National Bank of Serbia	2003,2004	2 July 2003	Current
	1 dinar	20 mm	4.26g	75% Cu, 0,5% Ni, 24,5% Zn	reeded		Coat of arms of Serbia, issuer’s symbols	2005-2009	2 July 2005
	1 dinar*		4.2g	Multilayer; low carbon steel core coated with a layer of copper on both sides/electroplated with a layer of copper and a layer of brass				2009~present	20 March 2009
	2 dinara	22 mm	5.24g	70% Cu, 12% Ni, 18% Zn	reeded	Gračanica monastery	Issuer's symbols, logo of the National Bank of Serbia	2003	2 July 2003
	2 dinara	22 mm	5.15g	75% Cu, 0,5% Ni, 24,5% Zn	reeded		Coat of arms of Serbia, issuer's symbols	2006~2010	27 December 2006
	2 dinara*		5.05g	Multilayer; low carbon steel core coated with a layer of copper on both sides/electroplated with a layer of copper and a layer of brass				2009~present	20 March 2009
	5 dinara	24 mm	6.23g	70% Cu, 12% Ni, 18% Zn	reeded	Krušedol monastery	Issuer’s symbols, logo of the National Bank of Serbia	2003	2 July 2003
	5 dinara	24 mm	6.13g	75% Cu, 0,5% Ni, 24,5% Zn	reeded		Coat of arms of Serbia, issuer's symbols	2005~2012	2 July 2005
	5 dinara*		5.78g	Multilayer; low carbon steel core coated with a layer of copper on both sides/electroplated with a layer of copper and a layer of brass				2013~present	5 July 2013
	10 dinara	26 mm	7.77 g	70% Cu, 12% Ni, 18% Zn	reeded	Studenica monastery	Logo of the National Bank of Serbia	2003	2 July 2003	current
	10 dinara						Serbian coat of arms	2005~present	2 July 2005
|	10 dinara	26 mm	7.77 g		reeded	2009 Summer Universiade logo	Serbian coat of arms	2009	26 June 2009
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g		reeded	Church of Saint Sava	Logo of the National Bank of Serbia	2003	2 July 2003
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g		reeded	Portrait of Nikola Tesla	Serbian coat of arms	2006	30 July 2006
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g		reeded	Portrait of Dositej Obradović	Serbian coat of arms	2007	10 December 2007
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g		reeded	Portrait of Milutin Milanković	Serbian coat of arms	2009	26 June 2009
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g		reeded	Portrait of Đorđe Vajfert	Serbian coat of arms	2010	16 June 2010
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g		reeded	Portrait of Ivo Andrić	Serbian coat of arms	2011	20 May 2011
|	20 dinara	28 mm	9.00 g	reeded	Portrait of Mihajlo Pupin	Serbian coat of arms	2012	8 June 2012
These images are to scale at 2.5 pixels per millimetre. For table standards, see the coin specification table. In 2011 the Serbian Coat of arms was slightly modified. In 2013 the metal content was slightly altered.[6]

Banknotes

In 2003, banknotes of the (re-established) National Bank of Serbia were introduced in denominations of 100, 1000 and 5000 dinars. These were followed by 500 dinars in 2004, 50 dinars in 2005, 10 and 20 dinars in 2006 and 2000 dinars in 2011.

Denomination	Obverse image	Reverse image	Main colour	Obverse	Reverse	Remark
10 dinara 131 x 62 mm			Ochre-yellow	Vuk Stefanović Karadžić (1787 – 1864), philologist and linguist	Member of the First Prague Slavic Congress, 1848 and vignette of the letters Vuk introduced.	Replaced with a slightly lighter 2006 issue. A revised issue entered circulation in 2011.
20 dinara 135 x 64 mm			Green	Petar II Petrović-Njegoš (1813 – 1851), metropolitan, statesman, philosopher and poet	His figure on the back, instead of the statue from the Mausoleum on Mount Lovćen.	Replaced with a slightly darker 2006 issue. A revised issue entered circulation in 2011.
50 dinara 139 x 66 mm			Violet	Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac (1856 – 1914), composer and music educator	Figure of Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac, a motif of Miroslav Gospels illumination scores.	Redesigned in 2005. A revised issue entered circulation in 2011.
100 dinara 143 x 68 mm			Blue	Nikola Tesla (1856 – 1943), inventor	A detail from the Tesla electro-magnetic induction engine.	Redesigned in 2003, 2004 and 2006. A revised issue entered circulation in 2012.
200 dinara 147 x 70 mm			Pink	Nadežda Petrović (1873 – 1915), painter	Silhouette of the Gračanica Monastery.	Redesigned in 2005. A revised issue entered circulation in 2011.
500 dinara 147 x 70 mm			Cyan	Jovan Cvijić (1865 – 1927), geographer	Stylized ethnic motifs.	Redesigned in 2007. A revised issue entered circulation in 2011.
1000 dinara 151 x 72 mm			Red	Đorđe Vajfert (1850 – 1937), industrialist	An outline of Weifert's beer brewery, hologram image of St. George slaying a dragon; details from the interior of the main building of the National Bank of Serbia.	Redesigned in 2003 and 2006. A revised issue entered circulation in 2011.
2000 dinara 155 x 74 mm			Grey	Milutin Milanković (1879 – 1958), mathematician, astronomer and geophysicist	Milanković's figures while at the desk (below: a graphical representation of his calculations of snow boundary movement for the past Quaternary) and from his student days in Vienna (behind: a stylised Sun disk drawing fragment and an illustration of Milanković's work).	Entered circulation in 2011.[1]
5000 dinara 159 x 76 mm			Purple	Slobodan Jovanović (1869 – 1958), jurist, historian and politician	An ornamental detail from the building of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts; silhouette of the National Assembly.	Redesigned in 2010. A revised issue entered circulation in 2016.[7]

• Economy of Serbia
• Serbian perper
• Yugoslav dinar
• Yugoslav krone

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Money of Serbia.

• Heiko Otto (ed.). "Historical and current banknotes of Serbia" (in English and German). Retrieved 2018-06-05.