# Why Is a One-Cent Piece Called a 'Penny'?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-one-cent-piece-called-a-penny/228416>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 10, 2004, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-one-cent-piece-called-a-penny/228416 "2004-02-10T08:44:53Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-one-cent-piece-called-a-penny/228416/1 "2004-02-10T08:44:53Z")

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As I’m sure most of you know, a [penny](http://freespace.virgin.net/philip.masding/images/penny.jpg) is a British coin. An American [cent](http://www.maydaymystery.org/mayday/offsite/letter050101/penny.jpg) is definitely not. (Actually, the British penny became the [New Penny](http://www.24carat.co.uk/images/1971pennyrev240.jpg) when they went decimal in 1971. But I’ve noticed when I see them at coin shows, etc. they’ve gone back to being called pennies. FYI, the plural of penny (value) is **pence**. The plural of the coin is **pennies**.)

So why do we called American cents pennies, informally at least. I’ve always seriously wondered this. Does anyone know the history behind this odd usage? Are _all_ low-value coins just called that in the English-speaking world? Or is there another explanation? Does it go back to 1776 in some way? etc.

🙂

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**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-one-cent-piece-called-a-penny/228416/2 "2004-02-10T09:13:16Z")

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Sometimes the blatantly obvious explanation is the correct one. We call one-cent coins pennies because our English ancestors called their one pence coin pennies.

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**Author:** ![owlstretchingtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/958977/32.png) [@owlstretchingtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/owlstretchingtime)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-one-cent-piece-called-a-penny/228416/3 "2004-02-10T09:18:57Z")

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They are stil just called “pennies” here in England. THe “new pence” usage was only used for a short time during the transitional period from proper money to decimal.

Owl

Who can still do sums like adding a half crown to a guinea and diving by 13 shillings.

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**Author:** ![notquitekarpov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@notquitekarpov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notquitekarpov)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-one-cent-piece-called-a-penny/228416/4 "2004-02-10T10:37:09Z")

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Urm, I can 😃

With my last UK employers when we got down to salary negotiations and they asked what I wanted, I named a bordering outrageous sum which they immediately accepted. Quickly realising that I had managed to undershoot what I could of got out of them I added, “…er that’s guineas, of course”!!

Well it was worth a try…