Page 10 - AHATA

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local Friday 7 July 2023
Did you know about...?

The history and meaning of the Aruban florin

(Oranjestad)—Aruba To- value of 200 dollars. The
day is proud to officially 50 florin brown color symbolizes
introduce a new seg- On this bill, we see the the earth of Aruba. Here
ment called Did you know Cododo (blue lizard found we see the Dornasol and
about…?, where we dive on the ABC islands), Can- the Warawara—both lo-
into some (historical) facts greu di tera (land crab), cal birds, along with the
of Aruba, its culture and Willem III Tower, and again symbols of Cas Floria with
way of living. In this first edi- the symbols of Cas Floria a piece of mosaic, the
tion, we look back at the with a piece of mosaic, Tuna cactus plant, and the
Aruban florin: its history, de- as well as a beach plant Caha di orgel (folkloric in-
sign and symbolism. called Banana di rif. The strument, used for many
colors are pink/purple. traditional songs).
In Aruba, we know the 5, Aruban bills: their design
10, 25 and 50 cent coins, and symbolism 25 florin 100 florin Extra fact:
along with the 1 and 5 Flo- The Aruban Florin collection On this orange bill, you can This bill is green in color, rep- the word “florin” supposed-
rin coin. Aruban Florin bills contains a variation of col- see an Aruban medicinal resenting nature. Here we ly is named after the Italian

include the 10, 25, 50, 100, orful bills, displaying incred- plant called Shoshoro. The see the Yuwana (Iguana), city of Florence or it’s a ref-
and rarely, the 200 bills. In ibly detailed and beautiful birds Trupiaal, Shoco, rock Aloe, Toteki (lizard), the erence to the Italian word
Papiamento we call our designs that tell the story of drawings, and the symbols symbols of Cas Floria with “florino”, both explanations
currency Florin, but the Aruba on a single piece of of Cas Floria with a piece a piece of mosaic, and a related to historical Italian
umbrella term for money paper. of mosaic are also depict- dance group performing currencies.
is placa. Cents are called ed. There is also a Purun the Baile di cinta (forkloric
cen (pronounced: seng), Prior to 2019, the Aruban di ceramica (clay pot), in dance with silk ribbons). Source: Placa, placa,
both in the singular and Florin bills were relatively reference to the relics left placa by the National Li-
plural form. Most coins are simpler in design com- behind by our indigenous 200 florin brary of Aruba.q
circular and their size de- pared to now, but still in- ancestors. There is another bill with a
pend on their worth. How- cluded beautiful designs
ever, the 50 cent coin is and colors, often depicting
easily recognizable by their local animals. These past
square shape, as is the 5 designs were made by the
Florin coin by their golden Aruban artist Everino Fingal
color. Every coin has the in 1990 up to 2019. Between
Aruban emblem carved 1990 and 1993, the 5 Flo-
on it, with the other side rin coin was a bill. The Fin-
displaying the worth of the gal designs also included
coin. The bigger 1 and 5 flo- a 500-Florin bill, which has
rin coins, however, contain now been discontinued.
the carving of the emblem
on one side, while display- In 2019, the Central Bank
ing the side profile of the of Aruba commissioned a
Dutch king, Willem-Alexan- new design of the Aruba
der, on the other side. When Florin bills, this time select-
his mother, Princess Beatrix, ing artist and former art
was reigning queen, it was teacher, Nigel Matthew,
her profile that was carved to present his new design.
on the two coins. Matthew kept the tradition
of including local animals
Outdated Aruban coins and the familiar colors on
and their names the bills. However, he in-
In the past, Aruban coins cluded additional designs
had distinctive names and that represent the Aruban
also varied in worth. For ex- culture and link to the In-
ample, a 5-cent coin was digenous inhabitants that
once called Dos placa; were the first to set foot on
10-cent coins were called the island.
debchi; 25-cent coins were
called diez placa and the Current design and sym-
50-cent coin was once bolism
called Yotin (pronounced: 10 florin
jo-teen). We also used a On the 10-florin bill, you
distinctive coins worth 2 ½ can see a Turtuga blanco
cents, called placa too. (white turtle). The blue col-
However, this last coin is or symbolizes the blue Ca-
no longer in use and has ribbean Sea. You can also
become a relic of Aruban see the ruins of the Bushirib-
money. Back then, the ana Gold Mill Ruins, a coral
5-Florin coin used to also be motif, and the symbols of
square, but now it is circu- Cas Floria (traditional Aru-
lar. ban house design) with a
piece of mosaic.