# OK I give up - identify this (Arabic) coin **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 2, 2009, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664 "2009-09-02T18:47:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/1 "2009-09-02T18:47:06Z")
I finally got round to sorting out my great big bowl of foreign coins (if I ever go back to Latvia or Botswana, the drinks are on me!). However, I’m stuck with one mystery coin. [Here’s a pic showing both sides](http://i28.tinypic.com/o9lbv4.jpg). The only countries I’ve been to that use the Arabic alphabet are Morocco and Egypt, and as far as I can tell it’s not from either of those. So where’s it from, and, for bonus points, what does all the writing say? (I thought it would be simple enough to at least work out what the currency was from the word after the figure 1, but [Arabic letters](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_alphabet) look frustratingly similar! ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/2 "2009-09-02T18:51:33Z")
Pakistan: > **[Pakistani rupee](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistani_rupee)** > > The Pakistani rupee (ISO code: PKR ) is the official currency in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and an unofficial one in the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the State Bank of Pakistan. It was officially adopted by the Government of Pakistan in 1949. Earlier the coins and notes were issued and controlled by the Reserve Bank of India until 1949, when it was handed over to the Government and State Bank of Pakistan, by the Government and Reserve Bank... ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/3 "2009-09-02T18:52:31Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > Pakistan: > > [Pakistani rupee - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistani_rupee) Thank you. That’ll be why I couldn’t decipher the “Arabic” then. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/4 "2009-09-02T18:57:30Z")
It would be the Urdu language, which is a close relation of Hindustani written with the Arabic alphabet. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/5 "2009-09-02T19:00:18Z")
It IS Arabic script, which I can’t read either. But the depictions on the coin look more Indian than Middle Eastern. Arabic script + Indian-looking motifs = Pakistan. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/6 "2009-09-02T19:18:21Z")
BTW, the Arabic alphabet is used for a large number of languages: > **[Arabic alphabet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_alphabet)** > > The Arabic alphabet,\[a\] or the Arabic abjad, is the Arabic script as specifically codified for writing the Arabic language. It is a unicameral script written from right-to-left in a cursive style, and includes 28 letters,\[b\] of which most have contextual forms. Unlike the modern Latin alphabet, the script has no concept of letter case. The Arabic alphabet is an abjad, with only consonants required to be written (though the long vowels – ā ī ū – are also written, with letters used for consonants... > [@](#): > > The alphabet was first used to write texts in Arabic, most notably the Qurʼan, the holy book of Islam. With the spread of Islam, it came to be used to write many languages of many language families including, at various times, Persian, Urdu, Pashto, Baloch, Malay, Hausa (in West Africa), Mandinka, Swahili (in East Africa), Balti, Brahui, Panjabi (in Pakistan), Kashmiri, Sindhi (in India and Pakistan), Arwi (in Sri Lanka), Uyghur (in China), Kazakh (in Central Asia), Uzbek (in Central Asia), Kyrgyz (in Central Asia), Azerbaijani (in Iran), Kurdish (in Iraq and Iran) and Ottoman Turkish. In order to accommodate the needs of these other languages, new letters and other symbols were added to the original alphabet. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/7 "2009-09-02T19:34:44Z")
I still don’t know how I ended up with a Pakistani rupee, though. My guess is that I got it in change in place of a 1p coin (I live in the UK). It’s very similar in size and colour. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/8 "2009-09-02T20:33:56Z")
Its not the Arabic script, its the Persian script. If it was Arabic, it would not have the letter “Pay” as the “p” sound does not exist in Arabic. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/9 "2009-09-02T20:55:26Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > It IS Arabic script, which I can’t read either. But the depictions on the coin look more Indian than Middle Eastern.\*\* Arabic script + Indian-looking motifs = Pakistan\*\*. You have just made yourself an emeny of every Pakistani man and woman. Thats fighting words sir!😃 ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2009, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/10 "2009-09-02T22:48:29Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > I still don’t know how I ended up with a Pakistani rupee, though.. Have you killed any Moblins? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/11 "2009-09-03T20:23:50Z")
Yup, it’s a Pakistani rupee; this particular coin has been minted since 1998. Go about halfway down this article to see pictures: [Pakistani rupee - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Rupee) ---
**Author:** ![fairygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5fc32e/32.png) [@fairygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fairygirl)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2010, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/12 "2010-07-27T14:42:41Z")
hi, i just happened to see your coin while i was trying to identify some of my coins and i have the exact same coin. It is from Pakistan. I don’t know if i can do this or not, but i will paste the link to the place… > **[Coins of India from ancient times to the present](https://www.joelscoins.com/india.htm)** > > A wide variety of coins from the Indian subcontenent from ancient to modern, including cons of India, Princely states, Pakistan, Nepal and Bhutan. it seems to be clear. hope you get it! Gentle blessings! ---
**Author:** ![magnetboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@magnetboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnetboard)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/13 "2010-12-27T18:12:09Z")
Okay i have this coin. I’ve determened that it has eastern arabic writing but i can’t find where the coin comes from. Here are the Pics: [http://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/](http://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/) ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/14 "2010-12-27T18:20:34Z")
The [Karakul](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karakul_(hat)) cap tipped me off that it might be [Jinnah](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ali_Jinnah). ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/15 "2010-12-27T18:31:15Z")
> [@magnetboard](#): > > Okay i have this coin. I’ve determened that it has eastern arabic writing but i can’t find where the coin comes from. > Here are the Pics: > [http://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/](http://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/) Egypt - see the “20 Piastre” coin in the table in this article: > **[Egyptian pound](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_pound)** > > The Egyptian pound (Arabic: جنيه مصرى \[ɡeˈneː ˈmɑsˤri, ˈɡeni-\]; abbreviations: £, E£, £E, LE, or EGP in Latin, and ج.م. in Arabic, ISO code: EGP) is the official currency of Egypt. It is divided into 100 piastres, (or qirsh, قرش \[ʔerʃ\]; plural قروش \[ʔʊˈruːʃ\]; abbreviation: PT, short for "piastre tarif")) and was historically divided into 1,000 milliemes (مليم  \[mælˈliːm\]; French: millième, abbreviated to m or mill). > Since July 6, 2022, the 10- and 20-pound notes have been made out of polymer pl... No, I can’t read it. But googling for “famous mosques” quickly turns up a picture matching the mosque on the coin. It’s in Egypt: > **[Muhammad Ali Mosque](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosque_of_Muhammad_Ali)** > > The Muhammad Ali Mosque or Mosque of Muhammad Ali (Arabic: مسجد محمد علي) is a historic mosque in Cairo, Egypt. It was commissioned by Muhammad Ali Pasha and built between 1832 and 1857. Situated in the Cairo Citadel in a position overlooking the city, it is one of the most visible mosques and landmarks in the skyline of Cairo. Unlike the traditional Cairene architecture that preceded it, the mosque was built in an entirely Ottoman and European-influenced style, further setting it apart The mosq... ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/16 "2010-12-27T18:40:11Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > Egypt - see the “20 Piastre” coin in the table in this article: > > [Egyptian pound - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_pound) > > No, I can’t read it. But googling for “famous mosques” quickly turns up a picture matching the mosque on the coin. It’s in Egypt: > > [Muhammad Ali Mosque - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosque_of_Muhammad_Ali) Actually, on closer examination, it’s the 1984 10 piastre one featuring the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, but it’s still Egyptian. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/17 "2010-12-27T21:07:03Z")
No way it’s Egyptian; that bad boy is Pakistani. The script behind the fellow’s head, beginning at the three dots arranged in a triangle, says ‘Paakistaan’ in Arabic script. And the obverse of the coin indicates it’s 1 rupee. I only know a smattering of Arabic, but I know enough to spot the difference between ‘Egypt’ and ‘Pakistan’. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/18 "2010-12-27T21:08:38Z")
> [@Olentzero](#): > > No way it’s Egyptian; that bad boy is Pakistani. The script behind the fellow’s head, beginning at the three dots arranged in a triangle, says ‘Paakistaan’ in Arabic script. And the obverse of the coin indicates it’s 1 rupee. > > I only know a smattering of Arabic, but I know enough to spot the difference between ‘Egypt’ and ‘Pakistan’. Somebody asked about a second coin, not the OP: > **[Photo Storage](https://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/)** > > Store your photos and videos online with secure storage from Photobucket. Available on iOS, Android and desktop. Securely backup your memories and sign up today! ---
**Author:** ![Cheshire\_Human](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Cheshire\_Human](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheshire_Human)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/19 "2010-12-27T21:38:42Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > No, I can’t read it. But googling for “famous mosques” quickly turns up a picture matching the mosque on the coin. It’s in Egypt: > > [Muhammad Ali Mosque - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosque_of_Muhammad_Ali) What I want to know is why the Egyptians built a mosque in honor of an American boxer. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![magnetboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@magnetboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnetboard)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-i-give-up-identify-this-arabic-coin/508664/20 "2010-12-28T17:13:54Z")
Okay. I verrry much appericaiate your help. So I have found more coins (yardsales; gotta love them) and I need your help again. Here are all of the pics: [Photo and Video Storage | Photobucket](http://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/%5Bhttp://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/%5D(http://s1093.photobucket.com/albums/i440/magnetboard/))