Through the centuries, the territory of present Tunisia has successively been under Carthaginian, Numidia, Roman, Byzantine, Vandal, Umayyad, Aghlabid, Fatimid, Norman, Almohad, Hafsid, Ottoman and French influence.
After a long period under Ottoman rule, in 1881 with the signing of the Treaty of Bardo Tunisia gets under French protectorate . Through its independence in 1956 the country became a constitutional monarchy. The Tunisian Republic is proclaimed in 1957. Habib Bourguiba became its first president and started modernizing the country. In 1987, Prime Minister Ben Ali took power. On January the 14th 2011 he was overthrown by a popular revolution, after 23 years of strong hand presidency.
Currency
Tunisia experienced different monetary systems, more or less complex.Ottoman period (Riyal - 1891)
The Ottomans used a non-decimal system. The reference currency was Riyal, divided in karubs and nasris.Here is a table showing the split:
| Unit | Bourbine (Burben) /Qafsi | Bourbe/Fals | Nasri/Asper | Karub | Riyal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bourbine (Burben) /Qafsi | 1 | 1/6 | 1/12 | 1/39 | 1/624 |
| Bourbe/Fals | 6 | 1 | 1/2 | 2/13 | 1/104 |
| Nasri/Asper | 12 | 2 | 1 | 4/13 | 1/52 |
| Karub | 39 | 6,5 | 13/4 | 1 | 1/16 |
| Riyal | 624 | 104 | 52 | 16 | 1 |
French protectorate (Franc 1891 - 1960)
During this period, the currency was the franc. Like in France it was divided into centimes.100 centimes = 1 franc
Actual monetary system (Dinar 1960 - today)
The actual currency in Tunisia is the dinar, divided into millimes.1 dinar = 1,000 millimes
Lettering
The alphabet and Arabic numerals (oriental) are used, but also the Latin alphabet and numerals.NB: Arabic is read from right to left.
Arabic alphabet
| Arabic character | ﺓ | ﻯ | ي | و | ه | ن | م | ل | ك | ق | ف | غ | ع | ظ | ط | ض | ص | ش | س | ز | ر | ذ | د | خ | ح | ج | ث | ت | ب | ا | ء |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| transliteration | h/t | ā | y | w | h | n | m | l | k | q | f | gh | ʿ | ẓ | ṭ | ḍ | ṣ | sh | s | z | r | dh | d | kh | ḥ | dj | th | t | b | a/è | - |
The numerals
| Arabic (oriental) numerals | ١ | ٢ | ٣ | ٤ | ٥ | ٦ | ٧ | ٨ | ٩ | ٠ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 |
Calendar
The Hijri and Gregorian calendars are used.The Islamic calendar on Numista.
National Symbol
Tunisia coat of arms
Images : Wikipedia
Article written by Ducatx.