ringgit, benggol, sen

David Mead David_Mead at sil.org
Fri Oct 15 08:54:20 UTC 1999


Can someone tell me the relationship between the ringgit, benggol and sen,
all coins used during the (late) Dutch colonial period in Indonesia?  I've
encountered various definitions:

ringgit (in indigenous lgs, sometimes ringgi or ringgi')
	"rijksdaalder", worth 2-1/2 guilders
	"rijksdaalder", worth 2-1/2 rupiah
       (note: some ringgits picturing Willem II, others Willem III)

benggol (in indigenous lgs., sometimes benggolo)
	a four "duit" piece
	a coin of the Dutch period worth 5 sen
	a coin of the Dutch period worth 2-1/2 sen
	
sen (in indigenous lgs., sometimes see)
	1/100 of a rupiah; cent, therefore 1/100 of a dollar, etc.
	a ten-cent piece

Also, is either of the last two the same as the so-called rooster coin (doi
manuk) which (of course) pictured a rooster on one side, and which was "tot
1922 in Midden-Selebes in omloop"?  This small matter first came up in some
Dutch-to-English translation work I was doing, and now it has popped up
again in some lexicography work that I've been asked to review.  So I'd
appreciate having some resolution on the matter!

Thanks much,  David Mead



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