What is a Japanese coin?

The character aptly translates to “round”, describing the shape of Japanese coins. The first official Japanese coinage dates as far back as 704 during Japan’s Asuka period. Before that, commodities such as rice and clothes were exchanged without currency. Over the years, Japanese coins have changed in material, size, and shape.

What currency is used in Japan?

The official currency of Japan is the yen. It’s denoted around the world with the ¥ symbol but locally, the "kanji" character 円 (pronounced “en”) is used. The character aptly translates to “round”, describing the shape of Japanese coins. The first official Japanese coinage dates as far back as 704 during Japan’s Asuka period.

How many Japanese coins are there?

Currently, there are four denominations of Japanese banknotes (1,000 yen, 2,000 yen, 5,000 yen, and 10,000 yen) and six denominations of Japanese coins (one-yen, five-yen, 10-yen, 50-yen, 100-yen, and 500-yen) used in day-to-day life. If you’ve never used them before, you might be wondering, what do Japanese coins look like?