Haitian gourde

Haitian gourde
gourde haïtienne  (French) goud ayisyen  (Haitian Creole)
ISO 4217
Code	HTG
Denominations
Superunit
5	Dollar ($)
Subunit
5/100	Penny (p)
1/100	Centime (¢)
Symbol	G
Banknotes
Freq. used	G10, G25, G50, G100, G250, G500
Rarely used	G1, G2, G5, G20, G1,000
Coins	5¢, 10¢, 20¢, 50¢, G1, G5
Demographics
User(s)	Haiti
Issuance
Central bank	Banque de la République d'Haïti
Website	www.brh.ht
Valuation
Inflation	22.8%
Source	The Global Economy, 2020

Republique d'Haïti, 10 Gourdes (1827).

The gourde (French: [ɡuʁd]) or goud (Haitian Creole: [ɡud]) is the currency of Haiti. Its ISO 4217 code is HTG and it is divided into 100 centimes (French) or santim (Creole).

The word "gourde" is a French cognate for the Spanish term "gordo", from the "pesos gordos" (also known in English as "hard" pieces of eight, and in French as "piastres fortes espagnoles") in which colonial-era contracts within the Spanish sphere of influence were often denominated.^[1]

First gourde, 1813-1870[]

The first gourde was introduced in 1813 and replaced the livre at a rate of G1 = 8 livres and 5 sous.

Coins[]

The first issues of coins were silver pieces of 6, 12, and 25 centimes. In 1827, 50¢ and 100¢ coins were introduced, followed by 1¢ and 2¢ in 1828. In 1846 and 1850, 6¼¢ coins were issued as well as 6¢ coins. In 1863, bronze coins, produced by the Heaton mint of Birmingham, were issued. These were in denominations of 5¢, 10¢ and 20¢ and were the last coins of the first gourde.

Banknotes[]

The governments of Haiti issued paper money in denominations of G1, G2, G5, G10, G20, G25, G50, G100, G500, and G1,000.

Second gourde, 1870-1872[]

In 1870 the gourde was revalued at a rate of ten to one. Only banknotes were issued for this second gourde, with the government issuing notes of G10 and G25.

Third gourde, 1872-[]

In 1872, the gourde was again revalued, this time at a rate of three hundred to one. In the early years of this third gourde, only banknotes were being issued and the name piastre was sometimes used instead of gourde, especially on a banknote issue dated 1875. In 1881, the gourde was linked to the French franc at 5F = G1 and coin production recommenced.

The peg to the franc did not last, in 1912, the gourde was pegged to the US dollar at a value of G5 to US$1. Although this peg was abandoned in 1989 and the currency now floats, because of the old link, G5 is often referred to as a "". Likewise, 5¢ is called a "Haitian penny". Indeed, in many places, prices are given not in gourdes, but rather in "Haitian dollars", which must be multiplied by five to convert to gourdes.

Coins[]

10 centimes 1949
Dumarsais Estimé	Coat of arms

The 1881 issue of coins consisted of denominations of 1¢, 2¢, 10¢, 20¢, and 50¢ and G1. 5¢ coins were added in 1889. Production of the 1¢ and 2¢ and G1 pieces ceased in the mid-1890s, whilst coin production ceased entirely from 1908 until 1949, when 5¢ and 10¢ coins were again minted. These were followed by 20¢ pieces in 1956, 50¢ in 1972 and G1 and G5 in 1995.

Coins currently in circulation are:

• 50¢
• G1
• G5

Banknotes[]

Banque nationale de la République d'Haïti, 1 Gourde (1916).

In 1875, banknotes were issued by the Banque nationale d'Haïti in denominations of 25¢, 1 and 5 piastres (equal to gourdes). Following this, banknotes were issued in denominations ranging from 10¢ to G5 by the various Haitian governments until 1916, when the Banque nationale de la République d'Haïti began issuing notes. In 1920, G1, G2, G5, G10 and G20 notes were issued, with G50 and G100 added in 1925. In the 1970s, G25, G250, and G500 notes were introduced. In 1979, the Banque de la République d'Haïti replaced the National Bank as the paper money issuing body. A 1000 gourdes note was introduced in 1999, to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of Port-au-Prince. A G20 note was released into circulation in 2001, both as a commemorative (to celebrate the bicentennial of the Constitution of Toussaint L'Ouverture) and as a regular issue. In 2004, the Banque de la République d'Haïti issued a series of notes to commemorate the bicentennial of Haiti.

Banknotes currently in circulation are:

• G10
• G25
• G50
• G100
• G250
• G500
• G1,000

Biccentenial of the Independence (1804-2004) series[]

Note: The G1, G2, G5, G20 notes are no longer produced and may no longer be in circulation.

See also[]

• Central banks and currencies of the Caribbean
• Economy of Haiti

References[]

External links[]

• Facsimiles of Haitian banknotes
• Coins of Haiti