The term ''tiền'' ( Hán tự: 錢) is used to refer to various currency-related concepts used in Vietnamese history. The name is a

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical ef ...

with the Chinese ''qián'' (錢), a unit of weight called " mace" in English. It can refer to a unit of weight used in

precious metal Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high economic value. Chemically, the precious metals tend to be less reactive than most elements (see noble metal). They are usually ductile and have a high lu ...

coinages as well as the number of cash coins in a string. The name was also used for different awards, both Chinese-style and Western-style awards given in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

throughout different times of its history. The word ''tiền'' is also the Vietnamese word for the concept of

money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money ar ...

in general.

Cash coins

In cash coins the term ''tiền'' could be used to refer to sub-strings of 10 cash coins in a string of 100~600. Though the quality of cash coins was also important for counting a ''tiền'', in 1945 a ''tiền'' of ''

tiền gián The term ''tiền'' ( Hán tự: 錢) is used to refer to various currency-related concepts used in Vietnamese history. The name is a cognate with the Chinese ''qián'' (錢), a unit of weight called " mace" in English. It can refer to a unit ...

'' included 36 cash coins, while a ''tiền'' of ''

tiền quý The term ''tiền'' ( Hán tự: 錢) is used to refer to various currency-related concepts used in Vietnamese history. The name is a cognate with the Chinese ''qián'' (錢), a unit of weight called " mace" in English. It can refer to a unit ...

'' included 60 cash coins.

Precious metal coinages

In the early 19th century, silver and gold bars were traded as currency in

imperial Vietnam The Empire of Vietnam (; Literary Chinese and Contemporary Japanese: ; Modern Japanese: ja, ベトナム帝国, Betonamu Teikoku, label=none) was a short-lived puppet state of Imperial Japan governing the former French protectorates of Annam ...

with values of up to 10 tiền (approximately 40 grams, or 1

tael Tael (),"Tael" entry
at the ...

). Bars of 1 tiền weighed between 3 and 4 grams.ED. TODA. (1882
ANNAM and its minor currency.
Retrieved: 23 July 2017. During this time, silver and gold coins were minted (using Vietnamese characters and design, but of types resembling either Chinese cash or Western coins) with denominations of up to 10 tiền being minted. During the

Minh Mạng Minh Mạng () or Minh Mệnh (, vi-hantu, 明命, lit. "the bright favour of Heaven"; 25 May 1791 – 20 January 1841; born Nguyễn Phúc Đảm, also known as Nguyễn Phúc Kiểu) was the second emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty of V ...

period (1820–1841) dragons on silver ''tiền'' coins were often depicted facing dexter (to the right), while during the Thiệu Trị period (1841–1847) and later these coins depicted dragons guardant (facing forwards).De Rode Leeuw
Armorial of Vietnam
by Hubert de Vries. Retrieved: 19 August 2021. In the year Minh Mệnh 14 (1833) the ''Phi Long'' dragon coins were depreciated by increasing the amounts of copper and zinc that were in them lowering their silver content. These coins continued to be minted in varying quantities into the 20th century in

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...

, although circulating alongside the French Indochinese piastre.

Tiền decorations

The ''Tiền'' was also a name of

decorations Decoration may refer to: * Decorative arts * A house painter and decorator's craft * An act or object intended to increase the beauty of a person, room, etc. * An award that is a token of recognition to the recipient intended for wearing Other ...

given by the government of the Nguyễn dynasty until 1945, like in

Imperial China The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the '' Book of Documents'' (early chapt ...

these coins came in the form of presentation coins, but after French colonisation the ''Tiền'' was also awarded as European-style

medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

s called the ''

Sapèque d'Honneur Vietnamese cash ( ; chữ Nôm: ; french: sapèque) is a cast round coin with a square hole that was an official currency of Vietnam from the Đinh dynasty in 970 until the Nguyễn dynasty in 1945, and remained in circulation in North Vietnam u ...

'' (" Cash coin of Honour"). ''Tiền'' presentation coin decorations came in multiple classes and were known as ''Đồng Tiền'' (銅錢, "Copper money"), ''Ngân Tiền'' (銀錢, "Silver money"), and ''Kim Tiền'' (金錢, "Gold money"). The ''Sapèque d'Honneur'' medal was further subdivided into the ''Sapèque d'Argent'' (made of silver) and the ''Sapèque d'Or'' (made of gold). These decorations generally took the shape of silver or gold cash coins as well as other coinages issued by the Nguyễn dynasty, but would often have more elaborate designs and (often) different inscriptions.

Notes

References

External links