Decimalisation

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Decimalisation or decimalization (see spelling differences) is the conversion of a system of currency or of weights and measures to units related by powers of 10. Most countries have decimalised their currencies, converting them from non-decimal sub-units to a decimal system, with one basic currency unit and sub-units that are valued relative to the basic unit by a power of 10, most commonly 100 and exceptionally 1,000, and sometimes at the same time, changing the name of the currency and/or the conversion rate to the new currency. Today, only two countries have de jure non-decimal currencies, these being Mauritania (where 1 ouguiya = 5 khoums) and Madagascar (where 1 ariary = 5 iraimbilanja): however, these currencies are de facto decimal as the value of both currencies' main unit is now so low that the sub-units are too small to be of any practical use, and coins of these sub-units are no longer used. Russia was the first country to convert to a decimal currency when it decimalised...

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