Malaysian ringgit

"MYR" redirects here. For other uses, see MYR (disambiguation.

The Malaysian ringgit (plural: ringgit; currency code MYR; formerly the Malaysian dollar) is the currency of Malaysia. It is divided into 100 sen (cents). The ringgit is issued by the Bank Negara Malaysia.

The word ringgit means "jagged" in Malay and was originally used to refer to the serrated edges of silver Spanish dollars which circulated widely in the area during the 16th and 17th century Portuguese colonial era. The Singapore dollar and the Brunei dollar are also called ringgit in Malay (although currencies such as the U.S. and Australian dollars are dolar), hence its official abbreviation RM for Ringgit Malaysia.

The Malay names ringgit and sen were officially adopted as the sole official names in August 1975. Previously they had been known officially as dollars and cents in English and ringgit and sen in Malay, and in some parts of the country this usage continues. For example, in Malaysia one ringgit is "one dollar" in English and "tsit⁸-kho·¹" (蜀塊/蜀块) in Hokkien. In the northern states of Peninsular Malaysia, denominations of 10 sen are called kupang in Malay ("poat⁸" in Hokkien), e.g. 50 sen is 5 kupang.