Coin collectors know that there are sometimes unique terms used for coins. The term “Quid” is one of these terms that can leave you wondering what it means. Simply put, a quid is a slang term used to refer to the British pound.
But, how much is a Quid in Dollars? The value of a quid, one pound Sterling, in US dollars is currently about $1.33. Of course, this value could change based on economic factors.
History of the Quid
Every country uses its own unique currency. Sometimes, these currencies are referred to using slang terms. In America, the dollar is often referred to as a buck. Similarly, the British pound is often called quid. There are several possible stories to explain the term, but no one is quite sure how the term quid came to be.
The Pound Sterling, GBP, is the official UK currency that is also used in Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Gibraltar, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, the British Antarctic Territory, and Tristan da Cunha. The term Quid is a slang, or more casual term, for the Pound.
A quid is one pound sterling. It is thought that the word has Latin roots since there is a Latin term “quid pro quo” which means “something for something.” The term is thought to have first been used in the late 17th century. Eventually, the word was used to describe British currency.
Others state that the origin of the world quid stemmed from the Royal Mint which was located in Quidhampton and money was referred to as quid.
Another explanation as to where the term quid came from is that the word Chuid is Gaelic for portion or share. In the 1800s, the Irish served in the British military. They would refer to their pay as their chuid which was interpreted as quid.
Others think the term may have come from Italian immigrants who called a number of coins used in Italy scudo.
The Pound Sterling And It’s Symbol £
In addition to using quid as a slang term to refer to the British pound, the monetary value also had its own symbol £. Earlier, in the 8th century, the term pound originated from the Latin word “poundous” which meant weight. Along with the official term of pound came the symbol £ which comes from the Latin word Libra.
The Pound Sterling is named as such so that it is clear that the pound referred to is of the UK and not another country’s pound. Within the United Kingdom, it is usually simply called the pound. Other parts of the world refer to it as sterling or pound sterling.
A pound coin originated in 1489 when Henry VII was king. The coin was called a sovereign. In 1971, the British Parliament instituted decimalization to make 100 pence equal to the value of one pound sterling. Before the 1971 decimalization, the pound was divided into 20 shillings with each shilling into 12 pence which equalled 240 pence to the pound.
By 1717, money referred to as pound sterling nearly became obsolete as Europe was moving to the gold standard and away from the silver standard.
Quid And The US Dollar
To a coin collector, the main question is how much is a quid in dollars? To answer this question, we need to look at other foreign markets and compare their worth.
Quid, or the Pound, is the fourth most traded currency in the foreign exchange market. It ranks fourth after the United States dollar, the Euro, and the Japanese yen. As of 2021, sterling is the fifth most held reserve currency in global reserves. These currencies along with the Chinese yuan form the basket of currencies that calculate the value of the International Monetary Fund IMF SDRs Special Drawing Rights.
Forex is the largest trading market platform and pairs currencies based on the top currency pairs. The Number One Forex currency pair is EUR/USD. In this pairing, the British pound is the base currency. The USD is considered to be the quote currency. The base currency is usually the trader’s domestic currency. The pair reflects how much of the quote currency is needed to buy one unit of the base currency.
The second of the Top 10 pairings is GBP/USD. GBP, Great Britain Pound, is the currency code. The current rate is GBP/USD 1.33 which indicates that $1.33 is needed to buy one GBP.
