Etymology of the Korean currencies
The won is the currency of both North and South Korea. "Won" is a cognate of the Chinese currency unit, the yuan (//), and the Japanese currency unit, the yen (; ¥), meaning "round object". The won is subdivided into 100 jeon ().
Korean currency
After the division of Korea, North Korea continued using the Korean yen for 2 years until the Central Bank of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea was established on December 6, 1947 and a new currency was issued. It was at the time pegged at par to the Soviet ruble. It was revalued at a rate of one hundred to one in February 1959 and new won were issued.