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
The won was introduced in 1902, replacing the yang at a rate of 1 won = 5 yang. In 1909, the Bank of Korea was founded in Seoul as a central bank and began issuing currency of modern type. The won was equivalent to the Japanese yen and was replaced by the Korean yen in 1910. At the same time, Korean yen notes issued by Dai Ichi Ginko (First National Bank (of Japan), 株式會社第一銀行) also circulated.