Japanese Money History & Currency Facts

Money in Japanese is called “Okane” [お金], while the official currency of Japan is called “EN” [円], which in Portuguese is called yen and in English Yen. In this article, we will see some curiosities about this and other currencies of Japan.

Some think that Japan has only had the Yen as currency throughout its history, but there were other coins with different names. The big confusion is that EN [円] is a word that can refer to any currency, which is why the other coins went unnoticed.

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Curiosities about money in Japan

The history of money in the country dates back hundreds of years, influenced by other Asian countries. The yen was introduced during the Meiji era in 1871 with fractionalization. Before that, there were other coins that we will see in the article.

In Japanese, the yen is always called EN. There is no plural in the Japanese language for this word, nor is there a fractional currency like cents in Brazil. Money will always be called EN.

Wado – The first Japanese coins

The first coins of Japan were minted around 708 AD and were small silver discs with a square hole punched in them. They were modeled after the Chinese coins of the time and were called “Wado Kaichin” or “Wado Kaiho.”

The Japanese government considered the new coins so important that positions at the Imperial court were offered to people who possessed large quantities of currency. ~~From early on, the government was hunting for money. lol~~

Minting is the process by which coins are engraved. It consists of promoting the stamping of a design on one or both sides of a coin, using a die for that purpose.

Kochosen – Japanese copper coins

Between 708 and 958 AD, a variety of copper coins were minted in different sizes, but still in the same disc with a square hole.

These coins were known as Kochosen, which can be translated as “domestic imperial copper.” The minting of coins was interrupted during the 10th century to protect the government from collapse.

The scarcity of copper and poor management of coin minting caused the value of Kochosen coins to decrease to a point where common people refused to use them in trade.

Koshu Kin – the Japanese weight currency

It took until the 15th century for coins to be used again in Japan. The Koshu Kin coins did not have a denominational value but were valued by weight, which was the only thing engraved on them.

Made of gold and silver, minted by individual warlords, they were a convenient way to buy land and weaponry.

How much does the yen cost or worth?

As already mentioned, the current money is called yen [円], in the West known by the strange symbol [¥]. Currently, we have in circulation:

Values of circulating coins: ¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥50, ¥100, ¥500;
Values of circulating banknotes: ¥1,000, ¥2,000, ¥5,000, ¥10,000;

Image from the time when the dollar was R$ 3.15! Nostalgia…

Don’t be fooled by these large values; we must consider that there are no measures of cents or decimals. Simply put, the Japanese currency is not fractional!

If we were to convert each coin ignoring the exchange rate and considering the price of products and the economy of Japan, we would have an equivalent note below: (Dollar exchange rate at the date of this update is about 5 reais).

VALUE IN 円	VALUE IN R$	EQUIVALENT TO A COIN OF
1 yen	0.05 Cents	1 Cent
5 yen	0.25 Cents	5 Cents
10 yen	0.50 Cents	10 Cents
50 yen	2.30 Reais	50 Cents
100 yen	4.60 Reais	1 real
500 yen	25.00 Reais	5 reais
1,000 yen	50.00 Reais	10 Reais
2,000 yen	100.00 Reais	20 Reais
5,000 yen	250.00 Reais	50 Reais
10,000 yen	500.00 Reais	100 Reais

This table is not exact; it only shows how Japan would function if they used [R$] instead of yen. What is the purpose of this? To help us have an idea of money, showing that 300 reais for us is just 100 reais for them.

Even if someone earns 300,000 yen a month, which is equivalent to 7,800.00 Reais. When spending it in Japan, considering the price of things and the economy, their money does not exceed 3,000 reais spent.

In the eyes of foreigners, Japan is a place with a high cost of living. But for those using the yen [円] and having a good salary, it ends up being a much better cost of living than in Brazil.

Sen and Rin – the yen was once fractional

Did the yen ever have cents? The yen was introduced in Japan in 1871 and had not one, but two fractionalizations called RIN [厘] and SEN [銭]. Understand better how this fractionalization worked below:

10 RIN = 1 SEN
100 SEN = 1 EN

This is how things worked in Japan until 1953. There were coins of 1 and 5 RIN, followed by 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 SEN. At the time of fractionalization, the yen was 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, and 500.

In Japan, there were even coins that were not completely round, as in the case of some versions of 1 SEN and 1 YEN. See below some images of these fractional coins and the old yen:

How much did the yen cost in the past?

It’s not so easy to discuss these old values because things worked very differently from the current market. The data I found during this research always points to comparisons with gold, stocks, and not with the dollar we are used to. Not to mention that the history of currency in Brazil had many twists, making it somewhat incomprehensible for current comparisons.

I won’t try to delve into the subject of economy, inflation, cost of living, and countless other factors that make the currency fluctuate in an incomprehensible way today. If you want to understand better, we recommend researching demand and supply, economic deflation, purchasing power parity, and international trade.

In 1914, one yen was equivalent to 0.50 in dollars. It is believed that 100 yen in 1914 is equivalent to 300,000 yen in 2017. Totally understandable, since 1 dollar in 1914 is equivalent to 23 dollars in 2015.

With 100 yen around 1920, you could buy 200kg of rice, 800 eggs, 4 years of newspaper subscription, go to the cinema 100 times, or eat a thousand ramen. Remembering that these are just some of the items mentioned and not all.

If you had 100 yen before the currency stopped being fractional, you would be considered rich. After all, at that time, the largest paper note was 100 yen.

The most recent table comparing the dollar with the yen dates from 1973 to 2016. Thus showing that in the last 40 years, the value of the yen has gone from devaluation and is currently worth more than the dollar.

Of course, we need to check the economy, cost of living, and salary of the time. Especially because the yen has not been fractional since 1953 (there are no cents), its smallest note is 1,000. So I personally consider 100 yen as 1.00 if the currency had cents.

The table below shows how many yen a dollar was worth from 1973 to 2016:

Year	Yen	Year	Yen
1973	301.15	1974	299.00
1975	297.85	1976	303.70
1977	288.25	1978	241.74
1979	201.40	1980	237.73
1981	202.19	1982	224.55
1983	232.90	1984	233.95
1985	254.11	1986	200.05
1987	154.48	1988	127.44
1989	127.24	1990	145.09
1991	133.65	1992	125.05
1993	125.02	1994	111.49
1995	99.79	1996	105.81
1997	118.18	1998	129.45
1999	113.14	2000	105.21
2001	117.10	2002	132.66
2003	118.67	2004	106.39
2005	103.27	2006	115.33
2007	120.59	2008	107.60
2009	90.35	2010	91.26
2011	82.63	2012	76.94
2013	89.15	2014	103.94
2015	118.25	2016	118.18

What to say about the coins that existed before the yen? If we examine the old values, we will be completely confused to notice that something costs 60 or even 600 times more today, but we must remember that the coins of that time were fractional and we cannot directly convert one yen.

In the Edo period, 1 MON (文) was worth about 12 yen today, but it is worth remembering that gold and silver were also used at that time. In the Meiji era (1867-1912), one yen from that time is equivalent to 3,800 yen today.

Why are the 5 and 50 yen coins holey?

In the past, various coins from different countries had a hole in the middle to prevent counterfeiting and reduce production costs. However, with the advancement of technology, many countries abandoned the practice of making holey coins, except for Japan and a few others.

Nowadays, the holes in Japanese coins are of great help to visually impaired people. It is believed that originally these holes were made to save metals that became scarce after World War II.

The holey 5 yen coin was created in 1948, while the 50 yen coin had no hole, but because it was very similar to the 100 yen coin, they soon made a hole in it to help with its identification.

Even though we know the main reason for the 5 and 50 yen coins having a hole in the middle, there are still questions regarding the origin of the holes in the coins. This is because for over 1300 years, there were various Japanese coins with a square hole in the middle, even during the Edo period (1603 – 1868).

China may have influenced Japan’s holey coins as it influenced much of Japan’s history and culture. There are theories that the circle of the coin represented the universe and the square in the middle of the coin represented the earth. Thanks to this hole, the coins were tied to the waist, which facilitated transportation and protected them from thieves.

The hole in the coin had various uses, such as serving as buttons for clothes or making necklaces. Some were even used in the manufacture of weapons. In the past, coins were made in such a way that removing and separating them during their casting was very laborious; the holes in the middle somehow facilitated this process.

The faces of Japanese money

Have you ever wondered who those people with their faces on the 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, and 10,000 yen notes are? Let’s delve into the origin of these notes and the people depicted on them.

Whose face is on the 1,000 yen note?

On the 1,000 yen note, we have the face of Hideyo Noguchi (1876-1928) printed since 2004. He was a great Japanese scientist, physicist, and bacteriologist who was responsible for discovering the antidote for snake bites and the causative agent of syphilis. He also proved that yellow fever was a viral disease and not bacterial as previously thought.

The story of Hideyo Noguchi is quite tumultuous; he faced various difficulties in childhood but recovered to become one of the brightest minds of the time. He is honored in several countries, and there is even a statue of him in the city of Campinas. On the back of the note, we find cherry blossoms, Lake Motosu, and Mount Fuji.

Whose faces are on the 5,000 yen notes?

On the 5,000 yen note, we have the face of the writer, novelist, and Japanese poet Ichiyo Higuchi (1872 – 1896), also known as Natsuko Higuchi. She was the first prominent writer in modern Japan.

She had a short life, but her stories had a great impact on Japanese literature and are still appreciated by the Japanese today. One of her famous works is Takurabe, which even had a film adaptation. On the back of the note, we find a work representing flowers of Isis, painted by Koorin Ogata.

Face of the 10,000 yen note

The 10,000 yen note has the face of Yukichi Fukuzawa (1835-1901), a journalist and entrepreneur who fought for civil rights. He is known as the Japanese Voltaire and contributed to the spread of liberal ideas and the modernization of Japan.

In Japan, you will find people referring to the note as “Yukichi-san.” On the other side of the note, we have the image of the phoenix statue from Byodoin Temple.

Faces on other yen notes

The 2,000 yen note, which is very rare, has no face. On the front of the note, we find the drawing of Shureimon, a famous gate located in Naha – Okinawa. On the back, we find the representation of the tale of Genji in Monogatari by Murasaki Shikibu.

Between 1984 and 2004, the 1,000 yen note had the face of Natsume Soseki (1867-1916), a Japanese novelist. He is known for the works Kokoro, Botchan, I Am a Cat, and Light and Darkness. He is often considered the greatest writer in modern Japanese history.

On the old 5,000 yen note, there was the face of Nitobe Inazo (1862-1933), an agricultural economist, author, educator, diplomat, politician, and Christian. And on the 10,000 yen note, the face of Fukuzawa Yukichi (1835-1901), an author, writer, teacher, and Japanese translator.

Another personality that appeared on various old yen notes is Prince Shōtoku (574-622), who had a significant political and religious influence during Japan’s history. He appeared on the 1,000 yen notes from 1950 to 1953, and on the 5,000 and 10,000 yen notes from 1957 to 1969.

See other old notes and the names of personalities that were present on them:

1 yen – 1946-1948 – Ninomiya Sontoku
50 yen – 1950-1953 – Takahashi Korekiyo
100 yen – 1950-1953 – Itagaki Taisuke
500 yen -1950-1953 – Iwakura Tomomi
500 yen – 1957-1969 – Iwakura Tomomi
1,000 yen – 1957-1969 – Ito Hirobumi

Questions about the Yen

In addition to the questions already mentioned, some ask various questions about the Japanese currency, let’s take these questions and answer them below:

How to read the yen?

The yen in Japanese has no plural; it doesn’t matter if the person says one or 10 yen, it will always be read as EN [円], which means circle or coin, the Japanese word for referring to Japan’s money. Did you know that there is no plural in Japanese?

Why are there no cents in the Japanese yen?

The answer is quite simple; the people preferred it that way. The Japanese currency was fractional in the past, but due to economic problems and inflation, cents became obsolete, and no other fractional currency was created.

To learn more about the fractionalization of Japan’s coins, we wrote an article about the yen being devalued and its currency being fractional. Is it true? The simple fact that the currency does not have cents leads some to have this idea of devaluation.

Why is the value of the yen so low?

Some question why the yen has such a low value, saying that the money is devalued. As mentioned before, the Japanese money is not fractional, which is why this misleading impression exists. The value of the yen is equivalent to the dollar, but without cents.

Everything happened when the Bretton Woods System collapsed in 1971; Japan’s currency began to float. This was the result of Japan’s efforts to become one of the world’s largest economic and industrial powers.

Which currency is worth more, the yen or the real?

The yen is much more valued than the Real, being the third most circulated currency in the world. The yen is only behind the dollar and the euro. The currency is heavily traded on stock exchanges and is always mentioned and traded among the big players.

How much does a Japanese worker earn?

In Japan, the minimum wage is around 150,000 yen, which can easily reach 300,000 yen, exceeding 10,000 reais when converted. In Japan, wages are paid by the hour, so earnings can vary significantly depending on the location, job, and working hours. To learn more, read our article on Japanese Salary.

How much is R$ 1 in Japan? How much is R$ 100 in Japan?

1 real is equivalent to about 25 yen, while 100 reais is equivalent to about 250 yen, and 1,000 reais is equivalent to about 25,430 yen. Below we will leave a table with details:

R$ 1 is equivalent to 25 yen;
R$ 2 is equivalent to 50 yen;
R$ 5 is equivalent to 125 yen;
R$ 10 is equivalent to 253 yen;
R$ 25 is equivalent to 631 yen;
R$ 50 is equivalent to 1,263 yen;
R$ 100 is equivalent to 2,526 yen;
R$ 300 is equivalent to 7,578 yen;
R$ 500 is equivalent to 12,629 yen;
R$ 1,000 is equivalent to 25,000 yen;
R$ 2,000 is equivalent to 50,000 yen;
R$ 10,000 is equivalent to 250,000 yen;
R$ 50,000 is equivalent to 1,262,000 yen;
R$ 100,000 is equivalent to 2,525,000 yen;
R$ 1,000,000 is equivalent to 25,258,000 yen;

How much is 1 dollar in Japan? Convert dollar to yen

I like to say that about 100 yen is equivalent to 1 dollar. In fact, since the yen has no cents, I usually use the dollar for calculations; just place a comma before the last two zeros to get the value in dollars.

Of course, the yen has been devalued recently, and the dollar has been on the rise. This comparison is not as accurate as it was a few years ago, but it can be made to calculate the purchasing power of the currency.

At the date of this article’s update (03/08/2022), the yen is quoted at 0.75 USD. Despite this, the table below will maintain the standard I use to calculate yen with dollars.

USD 1.00 is equivalent to about 100 yen;
USD 2.00 is equivalent to about 200 yen;
USD 5.00 is equivalent to about 500 yen;
USD 10.00 is equivalent to about 1,000 yen;
USD 25.00 is equivalent to about 2,500 yen;
USD 50.00 is equivalent to about 5,000 yen;
USD 100.00 is equivalent to about 10,000 yen;
USD 1,000.00 is equivalent to about 100,000 yen;

Why does the real value more than the yen?

People have the wrong idea that the real is worth more than the yen, but what happens is that the Japanese currency does not have cents and is not fractional. Its smallest paper note is 1,000 yen.

This does not mean that the Japanese currency is more devalued than the Brazilian currency; the purchasing power of the Japanese and the yen is much greater than that of Brazilians with the real.

Videos about Japanese Money

To conclude the article, let’s leave some videos about Japanese money and its curiosities:

Coins of Japan – Getting to know the Yen and its history