The US one cent piece is known as a penny. It is perhaps best known as an English currency denomination, in pre-decimal terms signifying 1/240 of a pound. Where does the term penny derive from?
Answer: It takes its name from the English heathen King Penda of the Midlands in the seventh century CE. It was then a silver coin, worth a considerable sum. By the reign of Alfred the Great in the ninth century, there were generally 12 pence to a shilling and 240 pence in a pound. Decimal currency was introduced into Britain in 1971.
Source: England – A Portrait by John Bowle
More at: History
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