- published: 18 Jan 2015
- views: 3166
The hryvnia, sometimes hryvnya or grivna (Ukrainian: гривня, pronounced [ˈɦrɪu̯ɲɑ], abbr.: грн (hrn in Latin alphabet)); sign: ₴, code: (UAH), has been the national currency of Ukraine since September 2, 1996. The hryvnia is subdivided into 100 kopiyok. In medieval times, it was a currency of Kievan Rus'.
The currency of Kievan Rus' in the eleventh century was called grivna. The word is thought to derive from the Slavic griva; c.f. Ukrainian, Russian, Bulgarian and Serbian грива / griva, meaning "mane". It may have indicated something valuable worn around the neck, usually made of silver or gold; c.f. Bulgarian and Serbian grivna (гривна, "bracelet"). Later, the word was used to describe silver or gold ingots of a certain weight; c.f. Ukrainian hryvenyk (гривеник), Russian grivennik (гривенник, "10-kopek piece"). Other smaller currency units were nogata (ногата, pelt of a large animal such as a bear or а wolf), kuna (куна, pelt of a small animal such as a mink or а sable; c.f. Croatian kuna). The smallest unit was veksha (векша, squirrel pelt).