In many national currencies, the cent, commonly represented by the cent sign (a minuscule letter "c" crossed by a diagonal stroke or a vertical line: ¢; or a simple "c") is a monetary unit that equals 1⁄100 of the basic monetary unit. Etymologically, the word cent derives from the Latin word "centum" meaning hundred. Cent also refers to a coin worth one cent.
In the United States and Canada, the 1¢ coin is generally known by the nickname penny, alluding to the British coin and unit of that name. In Ireland the 1c coin is also sometimes known as a penny in reference to the Irish penny, worth 1⁄100 of the Irish pound that was replaced by the euro in 2001.
A cent is commonly represented by the cent sign, a minuscule letter "c" crossed by a diagonal stroke or a vertical line: ¢; or a simple "c", depending on the currency (see below). Cent amounts from 1 cent to 99 cents can be represented as one or two digits followed by the appropriate abbreviation (2¢, 5¢, 75¢, 99¢), or as a subdivision of the base unit ($0.99).
The cent sign has not survived the changeover from typewriters to computer keyboards (replaced positionally by the caret). There are alternative ways, however, to create the character (offset 162) in most common code pages, including Unicode and Windows-1252:
On DOS- or Windows-based computers, hold Alt while typing 0162 or 155 on the numeric keypad. For the US International keyboard: c (Windows).On Macintosh systems, hold ⌥ Option and press 4 on the number row.On Unix/Linux systems with a compose key, Compose+|+C is a typical sequence.The cent sign has Unicode code point:
U+00A2 ¢ cent sign (HTML ¢ · ¢),U+FFE0 ￠ full-width cent sign (HTML ￠).Usage of the cent symbol varies from one currency to another. In the United States and Canada, the usage ¢ is more common, while in Australia, New Zealand and the eurozone, the c is more common. In South Africa and Ireland, only the c is used.
When written in English, the cent sign (¢ or c) follows the amount (with no space between), in contrast with a larger currency symbol, which is placed before the amount. For example, 2¢ and $0.02, or 2c and €0.02.
Ghanaian cedi's symbol is ¢.
Examples of currencies around the world featuring centesimal ( 1⁄100) units called cent, or related words from the same root such as céntimo, centésimo, centavo or sen, are:
Argentine peso (as centavo)Aruban florinAustralian dollarBarbadian dollarBahamian dollarBelize dollarBermudian dollarBolivian boliviano (as centavo)Brazilian real (as centavo)Brunei dollar (as sen)Cayman Islands dollarCook Islands dollar (cent, although one "50 tene" coin has)Cuban peso (as centavo)East Caribbean dollarEritrean nakfaEstonian kroon (as sent)euro – the coins bear the text "EURO CENT". Greek coins have ΛΕΠΤΟ ("lepto") on the obverse of the one-cent coin and ΛΕΠΤΑ ("lepta") on the obverse of the others. Actual usage varies depending on language.Fijian dollarGuyanese dollarHong Kong dollar (as "dimes")Indonesian rupiah (as sen)Jamaican dollarKenyan shillingLiberian dollarLithuanian litas (as centas)Malaysian ringgit (as sen)Mauritian rupeeMexican peso (as centavo)Moroccan dirham (as santim)Namibian dollarNetherlands Antillean guldenNew Zealand dollarPanamanian balboa (as centésimo)Peruvian nuevo sol (as céntimo)Philippine peso (as centavo)Seychellois rupeeSierra Leonean leoneSingapore dollarSouth African randSri Lankan rupeeSurinamese dollarSwazi lilangeniNew Taiwan dollarTanzanian shillingTongan paʻanga (as seniti)Trinidad and Tobago dollarUgandan shilling (cent discontinued in 2013)United States dollarUruguayan peso (as centésimo)Zimbabwean dollarExamples of currencies featuring centesimal ( 1⁄100) units not called cent
British pound – divided into 100 pence (singular: penny)Bulgarian lev (as stotinka, Bulgarian: стотинка ("hundredth")Chinese Yuan/Renminbi – divided into 100 fēn (分); in general usage, divided into 10 jiǎo (角).Croatian kuna – divided into 100 lipaDanish krone – divided into 100 øreIndian rupee – divided into 100 paiseIsraeli new shekel – divided into 100 agorotMacao pataca – divided into 100 avosMacedonian denar – divided into 100 deniNorwegian krone – divided into 100 ørePakistani rupee – divided into 100 paisePolish złoty – divided into 100 groszy (singular: grosz)Romanian and Moldovan leu – divided into 100 baniRussian ruble – divided into 100 kopeksSerbian dinar – divided into 100 parasSlovak koruna – divided into 100 halierov (singular: halier)Swedish krona – divided into 100 öreSwiss franc – divided into 100 rappen (known as centime in French and centesimo in Italian)Thai baht – divided into 100 satangTurkish Lira – divided into 100 kuruşUnited Arab Emirates dirham – divided into 100 filsUkrainian hrywnia – divided into 100 kopijkas.Examples of currencies which do not feature centesimal ( 1⁄100) units:
Czech koruna – no fractional denomination in circulation, formerly divided into 100 hellersJapanese yen – no fractional denomination in circulation, formerly divided into 100 sen and 1000 rin.South Korean Won no fractional denomination in circulation, formerly divided into 100 jeon.Kuwaiti dinar – divided into 1000 filsOmani rial – divided into 1000 baisaMauritanian ouguiya – divided into 5 khoumsMalagasy ariary – divided into 5 iraimbilanjaExamples of currencies which use the cent symbol for other purpose:
Costa Rican colón – The common symbol '¢' is frequently used locally to represent '₡', the proper colón designationGhanaian cedi – The common symbol '¢' is sometimes used to represent '₵', the proper cedi designation
