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 won
The won was introduced in 1902, replacing the yang at a rate of 1 won = 5 yang. Units: 1 won = 100 chon/銭, 1 chon = 5 poon/分(fun ec. yesteryear spellings) of the preceding currency. In 1909, the Bank of Korea (한국은행; 韓國銀行) was founded in Seoul as a central bank and began issuing currency of a modern type. The won was equivalent to the Japanese yen and was replaced by the Korean yen in 1910 during the Colonial Era. In 1910, the Bank of Korea was renamed the Bank of Joseon (; 朝鮮銀行), which issued notes denominated in yen and "sen".