Lira

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1 Italian lira 1863
Vittorio Emanuele II Coat of arms of the House of Savoy

Lira is the name of the monetary unit of a number of countries, as well as the former currency of Italy, San Marino and the Vatican City. The term originates from the value of a Troy pound (Latin libra) of high purity silver, and as such is a direct cognate of the British pound sterling; in some countries, such as Cyprus, the words lira and pound are used as equivalents. L, sometimes in a double-crossed script form () or less often single-crossed (£), is usually used as the symbol.

Contents

[edit] Former currencies

[edit] Current uses

[edit] Turkey

The Turkish Lira was introduced in the mid 1870s. The New Turkish Lira, equivalent to 1,000,000 old lira, is the current currency of Turkey, issued on January 1, 2005.

[edit] Malta

The Maltese Lira, known in the Maltese language as the Lira Maltija, is the currency of Malta. It is sometimes referred to as a pound.

[edit] Cyprus

The Cyprus pound is called "lira" in local languages.

[edit] Lebanon

The Lebanese pound is called "lira" in local languages.

[edit] See also

[edit] External link