What Are the Names of Old French Coins?

What are the names of old French coins? Since 1999, the French (like others in the European Union) have used the Euro for accounting purposes, and since 2002 the euro has been used for bank notes and coins. However, there are a number of different names for old French coinage dating back to the Medieval period.

The website Friesian.com compares British and French coins dating back to the Ancien Régime. According to this website, there were a number of different names of old french coins:

• Quarter cents were often referred two as liards or deniers.
• A one half cent piece was known in France as a sou. 
• A penny was known as a sou or a centime, and could be divided into centimes, so one penny would actually equal two sous or ten centimes (since a centime was actually measured to be one tenth of a cent.) 
• A Louis d’Or, a larger piece of coinage in old France, was valued at around $2.43, and was often made of gold or some other similar metal. 

As the years passed, some of the denominations of early French coins were later changed so that the French monetary system became less confusing and easier to use. The French monetary system was also streamlined in order to make it easier for individuals to make change and to carry change without having lots of denominations.

The Franc

When most people think of French currency, they think of "the franc." The Franc was actually the name of French coins worth 1 livre tournois during the period of 1360 and 1641. It was not introduced as the national currency in decimal form until 1795.

So, now you know what the names of old french coins were and you also know when France switched to the Euro.