Won
Won (원; 圓; McCune-Reischauer wŏn; Revised Romanization: won) is the official currency used in both South Korea and North Korea. Their exchange values differ, however.
| Full names | Symbols | Abbr | Equivalence¹ |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Korean won | ￦n or Wn | KPW | ≈ 0.5 US dollar |
| South Korean won | ￦ or W | KRW | ≈ 0.0010 US dollar |
Historically, North and South Korean won have been divided into 100 jeon (전; 錢; McCune-Reischauer: chŏn; Revised Romanization: jeon; in North Korea, chon is also Romanized jun). Jeon are no longer used in South Korea, as the smallest amount of money that typically changes hands is 100 Won, or roughly 10 cents US.
The word jeon is also used in Korean to translate the word "cent," and in this context accompanies bul, which means "dollar." These 2 words are used by Koreans living in the United States and Canada when referring to the currencies of those 2 countries.
Won is also the name of a new Korean sect of Buddhism.
