The Armenian dram (Armenian: դրամ; sign: ֏; abbreviation: դր.; ISO code: AMD) is the currency of Armenia. It was historically subdivided into 100 luma (լումա). The Central Bank of Armenia is responsible for issuance and circulation of dram banknotes and coins, as well as implementing the monetary policy of Armenia.
The word dram means "money" and is cognate with the Greek drachma and the Arabic dirham, as well as the English weight unit dram.
History
The first instance of a "dram" currency was in the period from 1199 to 1375, when silver coins called dram or tram were issued. Dram or Takvorin coinage would periodically continue to be produced for some time until the loss of Armenia's independence. The establishment of Russian Armenia saw the adoption of the Imperial ruble, followed by a series of attempts to localize the Russian ruble under the Soviet Union and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). On 21 September 1991, a national referendum proclaimed Armenia as a republic independent from the Soviet Union. The Central Bank of Armenia, established on 27 March 1993, was given the exclusive right of issuing the national currency.
In the immediate aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union, attempts were made to maintain a common currency (the Russian rouble) among CIS states. Armenia joined this rouble zone. However it soon became clear that maintaining a currency union in the unstable political and economical circumstances of the post-Soviet states would be very difficult. The Rouble Zone effectively collapsed with the unilateral 1993 Russian monetary reform process. As a result, the remaining CIS participants – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Moldova, Armenia and Georgia – were 'pushed out' and forced to introduce separate currencies. Armenia was one of the last countries to do so when it introduced the dram on 22 November 1993.
Armenian dram sign
As the result of common business practice and the unique pattern of Armenian letters, the shape of the sign and its variations appeared in the business scratches (daybooks). Until the official endorsement of the sign a number of artists and businessmen developed and offered various shapes for it. Now the dram symbol is included in the Armenian standard for the national characters and symbols and in the Armenian computer fonts. The current standard sign for the Armenian dram (֏, image: ; Armenian: Դրամ; code: AMD) was designed in 1995. In Unicode, it is encoded at U+058F ֏ ARMENIAN DRAM SIGN.
Coins
In 1994, a first series of aluminium coins was introduced in denominations of 10, 20, and 50 luma, 1, 3, 5, and 10 drams. In 2003 and 2004, a second series consisting of 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 dram coins was introduced to replace the first series.
The Central Bank has also issued a great number of commemorative coins intended for sale to collectors. A listing can be found at the authorized central bank distributors.
First series (1994–2002)
In 1994, a first series of aluminium coins was introduced in denominations of 10, 20, and 50 luma, 1, 3, 5, and 10 drams. The other coins are officially in circulation but rarely used because of their low nominal value.
- All coins bear the year of the first issue (1994).
Second series (2003–present)
In 2003 and 2004, a new series of coins was introduced in denominations of 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 drams.
- All coins bear the year of the first issue (2003 or 2004).
Banknotes
A first series of banknotes was issued in November 1993. It was withdrawn from circulation by 2005. A second series was issued from 1998 onwards which is still in use at present.
First series (1993–1998)
On 22 November 1993, banknotes of 10, 25, 50, 100, 200, and 500 drams were issued. Notes for ֏1,000 and ֏5,000 were put into circulation later.
Second series (1998–2017)
Banknotes of ֏50, ֏100, and ֏500 are rarely seen in circulation. Coins of ֏50, ֏100, and ֏500 are used instead.
A commemorative ֏50,000 note was issued on 4 June 2001 in commemoration of the 1,700th anniversary of the adoption of Christianity in Armenia.
500 dram commemorative note (2017)
A 500 dram commemorative note was issued on 22 November 2017 to commemorate both the story of Noah's Ark and the 25th anniversary of Armenia's national currency.
Third series (2018–present)
A third series of Armenian dram banknotes was issued in 2018, All denominations for this series are the same as its previous issues, with the 2,000 dram banknote as a newly introduced denomination, the 50,000 dram banknote re-issued for this series and the omission of the 50, 100, 500, and 100,000 dram banknotes for this issue. The new series are printed on hybrid substrates of Louisenthal.
The first three denominations, ֏10,000, ֏20,000 and ֏50,000, were issued on November 22, 2018 to mark 25 years of Armenian currency. The final three denominations, ֏1,000, ֏2,000 and ֏5,000 were issued on December 25, 2018.
Exchange rates
The modern dram came into effect on 22 November 1993, at a rate of Rbls 200 = 1 dram (US$1 = 404 drams).
Note: Rates obtained from these websites may be slightly different from the rates the Central Bank of Armenia publishes