The quetzal (;

code In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communicati ...

: GTQ) is the

currency A currency is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general definition is that a currency is a ''system of money'' in common use within a specific envi ...

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

, named after the national bird of Guatemala, the resplendent quetzal. In ancient Mayan culture, the quetzal bird's tail feathers were used as currency. It is divided into 100 ''centavos,'' or ''len'' (plural ''lenes'') in Guatemalan

slang A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...

. The plural is ''quetzales''.

History

The quetzal was introduced in 1925 during the term of President

José María Orellana José María Orellana Pinto (11 July 1872 – 26 September 1926) was a Guatemalan political and military leader. He was chief of staff of President Manuel Estrada Cabrera and President of Guatemala between 1921 and 1926, after overthrowing Cons ...

, whose image appears on the obverse of the one-quetzal bill. It replaced the Guatemalan peso at the rate of 60 pesos = 1 quetzal. Until 1987, the quetzal was pegged to and domestically equal to the

United States dollar The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

. The currency was named after the country's famous bird, the Quetzal, which is also on the

flag of Guatemala The flag of Guatemala, often referred to as the National Pavilion () or the Blue-and-White (), features two colors: sky blue and white. According to decree, the two sky blue stripes represents strength, justice, truth and loyalty. The white col ...

Coins

In 1925,

coin A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by ...

s in denominations of 1, 5, 10 centavos, , and 1 quetzal were introduced, although the majority of the 1 quetzal coins were withdrawn from circulation and melted. and 2 centavo coins were added in 1932. Until 1965, coins of 5 centavos and above were minted in 72% silver. and 1 quetzal coins were reintroduced in 1998 and 1999, respectively. The coins currently in circulation are disc-shaped and include Guatemala's national coat of arms on the obverse. The coins, and their reverse designs are: *5 centavos: the tree of liberty and the motto "''LIBRE CREZCA FECUNDO'' (''Grow free and fecund)"'' *10 centavos: a monolith from Quiriguá *25 centavos: an indigenous woman, Concepción Ramírez *50 centavos: Monja Blanca, the national flower *1 quetzal: a stylized dove, the word "''Paz (Peace)''", and the date “'' 29 de Diciembre de 1996 (29 December 1996)''”

Banknotes

The first banknotes were issued by the Central Bank of Guatemala in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 100 quetzales, with quetzal notes added in 1933. In 1946, the Bank of Guatemala took over the issuance of paper money, with the first issues being overprints on notes of the Central Bank. Except for the introduction of 50 quetzal notes in 1967, the denominations of banknotes remained unchanged until and 1 quetzal coins replaced notes at the end of the 1990s. In the top-right corner of the obverse face of each banknote, the value is displayed in Mayan numerals, representing Guatemala's cultural history. The Bank of Guatemala has introduced a polymer banknote of 1 quetzal on August 20, 2007, followed by a 5 quetzal polymer banknote on November 14, 2011. Both the 1 and 5 quetzal notes are once again on a paper substrate as of 2024.

Exchange rate

References

External links