odd
odd

Wanting to learn more about bobs, (Bob’s?), (British currency), I was astonished to find a currency conversion. I thought they weren’t used anymore. And nay, that’s Bolivian Bolivianos. 🇧🇴

A currency conversion screenshot showing the exchange rate from Bolivian Boliviano (BOB) to Norwegian Krone (NOK). The rate is 1 BOB = 1.60 NOK. The interface indicates a private search setting in Norway

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markstoneman
markstoneman

@odd Britain's old, pre-decimal currency has always mystified me. Then again, the value of the £ relative to the $ has also changed dramatically in the past century or so. I've given up, unless I'm offering a figure to others and feel they really need a reference point.

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artkavanagh
artkavanagh

@odd “bob” was a slang term for a shilling, i.e. one twentieth of a pound, or 5 pence in “new" (post 1973) money. So, a “ten bob note” was paper money, equivalent to 50p today. One bob was equivalent to 12 old pence, so one old penny was worth slightly less than half of a new penny.

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odd
odd

@artkavanagh Ah, thanks! I also thought Bob had something to do with Robert Cecil, as in «Bob's your uncle».

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In reply to
artkavanagh
artkavanagh

@odd I had forgotten that “Bob’s your uncle” referred to Robert Cecil. I don’t know the origin of “bob” for a shilling.

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devilgate
devilgate

@artkavanagh I came here to say much the same thing, but it was 1971. I remember putting my hand up at our ‘news’ session in primary 2, and saying, ‘Today is D-Day.‘

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artkavanagh
artkavanagh

@devilgate @odd That’s right, it was 1971. Thanks for the correction. I thought the change had happened before accession to the EEC (as it then was) but knew it couldn’t have been as early as 1970.

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