Centime (from ) is French for " cent", and is used in English as the name of the fraction

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 ...

in several

Francophone countries The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

(including

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

). In France, the usage of ''centime'' goes back to the introduction of the decimal monetary system under

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

. This system aimed at replacing non-decimal fractions of older coins. A five-centime coin was known as a ''sou'', i.e. a

solidus Solidus (Latin for "solid") may refer to: * Solidus (coin) The ''solidus'' (Latin 'solid'; : ''solidi'') or ''nomisma'' () was a highly pure gold coin issued in the Later Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire. It was introduced in the early ...

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currency, currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 1 ...

. In

Francophone Canada French is the mother tongue of approximately 10 million Canadians (22 percent of the Canadian population, second to English at 56 percent) according to the 2021 Canadian Census. Most Canadian native speakers of French live in Quebec, the ...

of a

Canadian dollar The Canadian dollar (currency symbol, symbol: $; ISO 4217, code: CAD; ) is the currency of Canada. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $. There is no standard disambiguating form, but the abbreviations Can$, CA$ and C$ are frequently used f ...

is officially known as a ''cent'' (pronounced /sɛnt/) in both English and French. However, in practice, the form of ''cenne'' (pronounced /sɛn/) has completely replaced the official ''cent''. Spoken and written use of the official form ''cent'' in Francophone Canada is exceptionally uncommon. In the

Canadian French Canadian French (, ) is the French language as it is spoken in Canada. It includes multiple varieties, the most prominent of which is Québécois (Quebec French). Formerly ''Canadian French'' referred solely to Quebec French and the closely re ...

vernacular ''sou'', ''sou noir'' ( means "black" in French), ''cenne'', and ''cenne noire'' are all widely known, used, and accepted monikers when referring to either of a Canadian dollar or the 1¢ coin (colloquially known as a "penny" in North American English).

Subdivision of euro: cent or centime?

In the European community, ''cent'' is the official name for one hundredth of a

euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

. However, in French-speaking countries, the word ''centime ''is the preferred term. The Superior Council of the French language of Belgium recommended in 2001 the use of ''centime'', since ''cent'' is also the French word for "hundred". An analogous decision was published in the '' Journal officiel'' in France (2 December 1997). In Morocco,

dirham The dirham, dirhem or drahm is a unit of currency and of mass. It is the name of the currencies of Moroccan dirham, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates dirham, United Arab Emirates and Armenian dram, Armenia, and is the name of a currency subdivisi ...

s are divided into 100 ''centime''s and one may find prices in the country quoted in ''centime''s rather than in dirhams. Sometimes ''centime''s are known as francs or, in former Spanish areas, pesetas.

Usage

A centime is one-hundredth of the following basic monetary units:

Current

Algerian dinar The dinar (; sign: DA; code: DZD) is the monetary currency of Algeria and it is subdivided into 100 ''centimes''. Centimes are now obsolete due to their extremely low value. Etymology The name "dinar" is ultimately derived from the Roman denari ...

Burundian franc The franc (ISO 4217 code is BIF) is the currency of Burundi. It is nominally subdivided into 100 ''centimes'', although coins have never been issued in centimes since Burundi began issuing its own currency. Only during the period when Burundi used ...

CFP franc The CFP franc (French language, French: , called the ''franc'' in everyday use) is the currency used in the France, French overseas collectivity, overseas collectivities (, or COM) of French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna. The i ...

CFA franc CFA franc (, ) is the name of two currencies used by 210 million people (as of 2023) in fourteen African countries: the West African CFA franc (where "CFA" stands for , i.e. "African Financial Community" in English), used in eight West African c ...

Comorian franc The franc (; ; sign: FC; ISO 4217 code: KMF) is the official currency of Comoros. It is nominally subdivided into 100 ''centimes'', although no centime denominations have ever been issued. History The French franc became the currency of Comoros ...

Congolese franc The Congolese franc (, code ) is the currency of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the past, it was subdivided into 100 ''centimes''. However, centimes no longer have a practical value and are no longer used. In April 2024, 2,800 francs w ...

* Djiboutian franc * Ethiopian birr (as santim) * Guinean franc * Haitian gourde *

Moroccan dirham The Moroccan dirham (, ; Currency symbol, sign: DH; code: MAD) is the official monetary currency of Morocco. It is issued by the Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank of Morocco. One Moroccan dirham is subdivided into 100 ''santimat'' (singular: santi ...

* Rwandan franc *

Swiss franc The Swiss franc, or simply the franc, is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) iss ...

(by French and English speakers only; Italian speakers use

centesimo Centesimo (; : ''centesimi''; ; : ''centésimos'') is a currency unit equivalent to cent, derived from the Latin ''centesimus'' meaning "hundredth". In Italy it was the division of the Italian lira. Currencies that have centesimo as subunits in ...

. See Rappen)

Obsolete

Algerian franc The franc was the currency of Algeria between 1848 and 1964. It was subdivided into 100 centimes. History The franc replaced the budju when France occupied the country. It was equivalent to the French franc and was revalued in 1960 at a rate of ...

Belgian franc The Belgian franc was the currency of the Kingdom of Belgium from 1832 until 2002 when the euro was introduced. It was subdivided into 100 subunits, each known as a in Dutch, or in French and German. History The ''gulden'' (guilder) of 20 ''st ...

(Dutch: ) * Cambodian franc * French Camerounian franc * French Guianan franc *

French franc The franc (; , ; currency sign, sign: F or Fr), also commonly distinguished as the (FF), was a currency of France. Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amoun ...

* Guadeloupe franc * Katangese franc *

Latvian lats The Latvian lats (plural: ''lati'', plural genitive: ''latu'', second Latvian lats ISO 4217 currency code: LVL) was the currency of Latvia from 1922 until 1940 and from 1993 until it was replaced by the euro on 1 January 2014. A two-week trans ...

(Latvian: santīms) *

Luxembourgish franc The Luxembourg franc (''F'' or ISO ''LUF'', ), subdivided into 100 centimes, was the currency of Luxembourg between 1854 and 2002, except from 1941 to 1944. From 1944 to 2002, its value was equal to that of the Belgian franc. The franc remained i ...

Malagasy franc The franc (ISO 4217 code ''MGF'') was the currency of Madagascar until 1 January 2005. It was subdivided into 100 centimes. In Malagasy the corresponding term for the franc is ''iraimbilanja'', and five Malagasy francs is called ''ariary''. His ...

Malian franc The Malian franc was the independent currency of Mali between 1962 and 1984. Although technically subdivided into 100 ''centimes'', no subdivisions were issued. History Until 1962, Mali used the West African CFA franc. The Malian franc was intro ...

* Martinique franc * Monegasque franc *

Moroccan franc The franc () was the currency of French Morocco from 1921. It became the currency of all Morocco in 1957 and circulated until 1974. It was divided into 100 centimes (Arabic: سنتيم). History Before the first World War, the Moroccan rial was w ...

New Hebrides franc The franc was the currency of the Anglo-French Condominium of the Pacific island group of the New Hebrides (which became Vanuatu in 1980). It circulated alongside British and later Australian currency. The New Hebrides franc was nominally divided ...

* Réunion franc *

Spanish Peseta The peseta (, ) was the currency of Spain between 1868 and 2002. Along with the French franc, it was also a de facto currency, ''de facto'' currency used in Andorra (which had no national currency with legal tender). Etymology The name of the ...

Tunisian franc The franc (French language, French, ) was the currency of Tunisia between 1891 and 1958. It was divided into 100 centimes (صنتيم) and was equivalent to the French franc. History The franc replaced the Tunisian rial, rial in 1891 at the rate ...

Westphalian frank The Westphalian frank was a currency of the Kingdom of Westphalia between 1808 and 1813. It circulated alongside the Thaler, was equal to the French franc, and was subdivided into 100 ''Centimen''. The currency was dissolved upon being recapture ...

References

{{Reflist Marianne (personification) Cent (currency)