Turkish Lira
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The Turkish lira (Turkish: Türk lirası) is the official currency of Turkey. It is designated by the international code TRY and is subdivided into 100 units called kuruş. The Central Bank of the Turkish Republic (TCMB) is the sole authority responsible for issuing banknotes and managing monetary policy.
The lira is also used in Northern Cyprus, a region economically dependent on Turkey. The lira operates under a floating exchange rate system, meaning that the foreign exchange market determines its value, although the central bank occasionally intervenes.
Brief history
The lira originated from the currency of the Ottoman Empire and was continued by the Turkish Republic, founded in 1923. The term 'lira' is related to European words derived from 'libra', which originally referred to a unit of weight.
Redenomination of 2005
From the 1980s through the 1990s, high inflation caused the value of the lira to decline and necessitated the use of large denominations. In 2005, a redenomination was carried out: six zeros were removed, so that one million old lira became one new lira. For a period, the currency was called the New Turkish Lira (YTL), before reverting to the standard name lira.
The ₺ symbol
In 2012, the central bank introduced a dedicated symbol for the lira, ₺, consisting of the letter L with two horizontal strokes through it. Previously, the abbreviation TL was used. This new symbol is included in Unicode character encoding systems.
Recent economic situation
Since the mid-2010s, the lira has experienced persistent depreciation against the US dollar and the euro. Commonly cited causes include high inflation, disagreements over central bank independence, and disputes over interest rate levels. The government and central bank have tried various measures, including foreign exchange reserves and policies aimed at encouraging citizens to hold their savings in lira.