Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark

Template:Short description {{#invoke:Hatnote|hatnote}} Template:Infobox currency The convertible mark (Template:Lang-sh-Latn-Cyrl; sign: KM; code: BAM) is the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is divided into 100 pfenig or fening (Template:Lang-sh-Cyrl) and locally abbreviated KM (Template:Lang-sh-Cyrl).<ref name="CBBH1"/> While the currency and its subunits are uniform for both constituent polities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, namely the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) and Republika Srpska (RS), the designs of the KM 10, KM 20, KM 50, and KM 100 banknotes are differentiated for each polity.

HistoryEdit

The convertible mark was established by the 1995 Dayton Agreement. It replaced the Bosnia and Herzegovina dinar, Croatian kuna and Yugoslav novi dinar as the single currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1998. Mark refers to the Deutsche Mark, the currency to which it was pegged at par.<ref name="CBBH1"/>

EtymologyEdit

The names derive from German. The three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian, have adopted the German nouns {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} and {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} as loanwords marka and pfenig. The Official Gazette of BiH (Bosnian: {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}), Official newspaper of FBiH (Bosnian: {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}) and other official documents recognised pfenig or пфениг<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> (depending on the script; Serbian and Bosnian use both Latin and Cyrillic, while Croatian uses only Latin) as the name of the subdivision. Most, however, consider the "pf" cluster in "pfenig" to be nigh unpronounceable, so the pronunciation was practically immediately reduced to "fenig", which eventually gave rise to the "fening" misspelling. Banknotes of 50 fenings circulated from 1998 to 2003.<ref name="CBBH1"/> They were denoted "50 KONVERTIBILNIH PFENIGA" / "50 КОНВЕРТИБИЛНИХ ПФЕНИГА"; technically, the word convertible should not qualify the word pfenig because only the mark is convertible.<ref name="kf">Template:Cite journal</ref> (See Errors for all of the errors on banknotes and coins.) Coins of 10, 20, and 50 pfenigs have circulated since 1998<ref name="CBBH1"/> (the 5-pfenigs coin was released in 2006).<ref name="CBBH1"/> All of them are inscribed "{{#invoke:Lang|lang}}" / "{{#invoke:Lang|lang}}" on the obverse. The misspelling {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}/{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} has never been corrected, and it took such a hold that it was officially adopted and not recognised as incorrect.<ref name="CBBH1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Due to the overall confusion surrounding the foreign name of the currency, most people call the convertible mark simply "marka" ("mark") while pfennigs are referred to as "kovanice" ("nickels").

Plurals and casesEdit

Serbo-Croatian is subject to a case system. For the purposes of pluralizing currency terms, three situations are relevant:

In combination with numbers 1, 21, 31, 41, 51, 61, 71, 81, 101, 1001, et cetera (i. e. all numbers ending in "1" except 11), nouns use the nominative case singular (the base form):

màrka (màr: a – short vowel, rising tone) and pfénig/féning ((p)fé: e – short vowel, rising tone)

In combination with numbers whose final digit is 2, 3, or 4 (except 12, 13, and 14), nouns use the genitive case singular (the "paucal form"):

màrke (màr: a – short vowel, rising tone) and pféniga/féninga ((p)fé: e – short vowel, rising tone)

In combination with numbers 0, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 100, 1000, 10000, et cetera (i. e. all numbers ending in 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0, 11, 12, 13, or 14), nouns use the genitive case plural:

mȁrākā (mȁr: a – short vowel, falling tone; vowels ā are not accented but have genitive length) and pfénīgā/fénīngā ((p)fé: e – short vowel, rising tone; vowels ī and ā are not accented but have genitive length)

(For further information on accents in BSC, see Serbo-Croatian phonology and Shtokavian dialect#Accentuation.)

For the pfenig, the plural is pfeniga/feninga with a short unaccented a, whereas the genitive plural is the same pfeniga/feninga but with a long unaccented i and a. A syllable after an accented syllable whose vowel is pronounced long and with a continuous tone, i. e. neither rising or falling, is said to have a genitive length (although the word does not necessarily have to be in the genitive case in order to have genitive length on its syllable; it can be in the locative also).

These matters should be noted when the local names are used in English. For example, the English plural "ten pfenigas" / "ten feningas" is incorrect because the final a in the BSC plural pfeniga/feninga already indicates the plural. Therefore "ten pfenigs" / "ten fenings" should be used. The Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CBBH) uses "fenings" as the English plural.<ref name="CBBH1"/> Likewise, "twenty-one markas", "two markes", and "twelve marakas" are incorrect; "twenty-one marks", "two marks", and "twelve marks", respectively, are correct.

CoinsEdit

In December 1998, coins were introduced in denominations of 10, 20 and 50 fenings.<ref name="CBBH1"/> Coins of 5 fenings, KM 1, KM 2 and KM 5 were introduced later.<ref name="CBBH1"/> The coins were designed by Bosnian designer Kenan Zekić<ref>Website of Kenan Zekić. Available at: http://kenanzekic.com.ba/ Template:Webarchive</ref> and minted at the Royal Mint in Llantrisant (Wales, UK).<ref name="CBBH1"/>

Coins of the convertible mark (1998–present)<ref name="CBBH1"/>
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Technical parameters			Description			Date of
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Diameter	Mass	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse	minting	issue	withdrawal	lapse
O R	5 fenings	18.00 mm	2.66 g	nickel-plated steel	reeded	Map of Bosnia and Herzegovina, country name, denomination	Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina, country name, year	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap	Current
O R	10 fenings	20.00 mm	3.90 g	copper-plated steel	plain	Map of Bosnia and Herzegovina, country name, denomination	Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina, country name, year	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap	Current
O R	20 fenings	22.00 mm	4.50 g		reeded			Template:Nowrap
O R	50 fenings	24.00 mm	5.15 g		reeded			Template:Nowrap
O R	1 mark	23.25 mm	4.95 g	nickel-plated steel	milled and smooth	Denomination, country name, indented and inverted triangles*	Coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap	Current
O R	2 marks	25.75 mm	6.90 g	cupro-nickel (inner ring); golden 5.5%; nickel-brass combination (outer ring)	milled and smooth		Peace dove	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	5 marks	30.00 mm	10.35 g	nickel-brass (inner ring); copper-nickel (outer ring)	milled		Peace dove	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
Template:Standard coin table notice The triangles are intended for the visually impaired.

BanknotesEdit

In 1998, notes were introduced in denominations of 50 fenings, KM 1, KM 5, KM 10, KM 20, KM 50, and KM 100. KM 200 notes were added in 2002, while the 50-fening and KM 1 and KM 5 notes were later withdrawn from circulation. All current notes are valid throughout the nation.<ref name="CBBH1"/>

The Central Bank of Bosnia Herzegovina issues the banknotes, with distinct designs for the constituent polities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska,¹ except for the largest denomination, i. e. the KM 200 note. The banknotes are legal tender throughout the country.<ref name="CBBH1"/> On the notes for the Republika Srpska, inscriptions are printed first in Cyrillic and then Latin script, and vice versa. Banknotes, with the exception of the KM 200 note, are printed by the French company Oberthur.<ref name="CBBH1"/><ref>Mulic, Josef (2000). Papirini novac na tlu Bosne i Hercegovine od 1918. godine do danas</ref>

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina issuesEdit

Banknotes of the convertible mark for FBiH (1998–present)<ref name="CBBH1"/>
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Technical parameters		Description		Date of
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Dimensions	Watermark	Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal	lapse
O R	50 fenings	120 mm × 60 mm	Central Bank monogram repeated vertically	Skender Kulenović	Stećak Zgošca fragment	Template:Nowrap (1998)	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	1 mark	120 mm × 60 mm		Ivan Franjo Jukić	Stećak Stolac fragment	Template:Nowrap (1998)		Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	5 marks	122 mm × 62 mm		Meša Selimović	Trees	Template:Nowrap (1998)		Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	10 marks	130 mm × 65 mm		Mehmedalija Mak Dizdar	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2008) (2012) (2017) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap 1 June 2012 14 April 2017	Current
O R	20 marks	138 mm × 68 mm		Antun Branko Šimić	Stećak Radimlja fragment	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2008) (2012) (2019)			Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap 1 June 2012 14 April 2017
O R	50 marks	146 mm × 71 mm		Musa Ćazim Ćatić	Stone relief	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2002) (2007) (2008) (2009) (2012) (2017) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2002) Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2008) Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap
O R	100 marks	154 mm × 74 mm		Nikola Šop	Stećak Zgošca fragment	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2002) (2007) (2008) (2012) (2017) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2002) Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2008) Template:Nowrap
Template:Standard banknote table notice

Republika Srpska issuesEdit

Banknotes of the convertible mark for RS (1998–present)<ref name="CBBH1"/>
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Technical parameters		Description		Date of
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Dimensions	Watermark	Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal	lapse
O R	50 fenings	120 mm × 60 mm	Central Bank monogram repeated vertically	Branko Ćopić	House and books	Template:Nowrap (1998)	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	1 mark	120 mm × 60 mm		Ivo Andrić	The Bridge on the Drina	Template:Nowrap (1998)		Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	Template:Ref label5 marks	122 mm × 62 mm		Meša Selimović	Trees	Template:Nowrap (1998)		Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
O R	10 marks	130 mm × 65 mm		Aleksa Šantić	Loaf of bread	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2008) (2012) (2017) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap	Current
O R	20 marks	138 mm × 68 mm		Filip Višnjić	Gusle (musical instrument)	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2008) (2012) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap
O R	50 marks	146 mm × 71 mm		Jovan Dučić	pen, eyeglasses and book	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2002) (2007) (2008) (2009) (2012) (2017) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2002) Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2008) Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap
O R	100 marks	154 mm × 74 mm		Petar Kočić	pen, eyeglasses and book	Template:Nowrap (1998) (2002) (2007) (2008) (2012) (2017) (2019)	Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2002) Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap (2008) Template:Nowrap
Template:Standard banknote table notice

Nationwide issuesEdit

The portraits of Ivan Franjo Jukić and Meša Selimović, which are both writers, were featured by consensus between both entities on all KM 1 and KM 5 notes used between 1998 and 2010.<ref name="CBBH1"/>

On 15 May 2002, a KM 200 banknote, designed by Robert Kalina, was introduced during a promotion that was held in the Central Bank of BH. The reverse design which depicts a bridge is meant to resemble the euro banknotes, which were also designed by Robert Kalina. After an international tender, the Austrian company Oesterreichische Banknoten und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH (OeBS) in Vienna was chosen to print the notes. Initially, six million were ordered.<ref name="auto">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Banknotes of the convertible mark for both entities (2002–present)<ref name="CBBH1"/>
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Technical parameters		Description		Date of
Image Template:Abbr Template:Abbr	Value	Dimensions	Watermark	Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal	lapse
O R	200 marks	156 mm × 76 mm	Image of the Bridge on River Drina<ref name="auto"/>	Ivo Andrić	The Bridge on the Drina	Template:Nowrap (2002) Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap	Current
Template:Standard banknote table notice

Exchange ratesEdit

Initially the mark was pegged to the Deutsche Mark at par.<ref name="CBBH1"/> Since the replacement of the German mark by the euro in 2002, the Bosnian convertible mark uses the same fixed exchange rate to euro that the German mark had (that is, Template:Nowrap<ref name="CBBH1"/>

Template:Exchange Rate

ErrorsEdit

File:1 KM banknote mistake (RS).jpg

Detail on KM 1 banknote for Republika Srpska with misspelled name of Ivo Andrić written in Cyrillic as "ИВО АНДРИЂ / IVO ANDRIĐ" instead of "ИВО АНДРИЋ / IVO ANDRIĆ"

Banknotes and coins of Bosnia and Herzegovina have many mistakes and inconsistencies.<ref name="CBBH1"/>

Officially, only one banknote has not been released in circulation because of a mistake, even though other banknotes with mistakes had been issued.<ref name="CBBH1"/>

Banknote examplesEdit

These are the most important mistakes that have been noticed to date:

Both designs of the 50 fening banknote imprinted the adjective "convertible" next to the noun "pfenig", although only the mark has the "convertible" prefix ("50 KONVERTIBILNIH PFENIGA" / "50 КОНВЕРТИБИЛНИХ ПФЕНИГА").<ref name="kf"/>
The KM 1 banknote for Republika Srpska was imprinted "ИВО АНДРИЂ / IVO ANDRIĐ" instead of "ИВО АНДРИЋ / IVO ANDRIĆ". This banknote was immediately removed from circulation.Template:Ref label
Both designs of the KM 5 banknote had the Cyrillic word "five" incorrectly printed in Latin script on its reverse ("PET КОНВЕРТИБИЛНИХ МАРАКА", instead of "ПЕТ ..."). Also, Meša Selimović's name is written in Cyrillic as "Меща Селимовић" instead of "Meша Селимовић" (the letter щ is not even used in any of the official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina).
The KM 10 banknote for Republika Srpska, first series, 1998, had Aleksa Šantić's name printed in Latin script although it should have been printed in Cyrillic script as it is on all other examples of the 1998 series.
Both designs of the KM 100 banknoteTemplate:Which were incorrectly printed with the Cyrillic abbreviation of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina with "Џ / Dž" instead of "Ц / C" (i. e. "ЏББХ / DžBBH" instead of "ЦББХ / CBBH") in the safety bar.
In 2017, Edin Bujak of the Department of Archaeology of the Faculty of Philosophy in Sarajevo noticed a mistake on the KM 10 banknote for the Federation of B&H. The picture of the stećak on the reverse is actually a picture of a stećak from Križevići, Olovo and not from the Radimlja necropolis as stated on the banknote. The Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina confirmed this mistake, and it will be corrected in future printing of the banknote.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Coin examplesEdit

The name of the subdivision of the convertible mark has been incorrectly engraved on coins: the word "pfenig" has been engraved as "fening". This mistake has taken such a hold, especially because there were and are no 50 pfenig/fening banknotes in circulation, that "fening" was officially adopted as the name of the hundredth unit of the KM and is not recognized as incorrect.<ref name="CBBH1"/>