The ruble () was the currency of Tajikistan between 10 May 1995 and 29 October 2000. It was ostensibly subdivided into 100 tanga, although no coins or banknotes were issued denominated in tanga. The currency was only issued as paper money, with denominations to up to 1000 rubles.
History Like a number of other republics of the former Soviet Union, Tajikistan continued using the Soviet and Russian rubles for a few years after independence. On 26 July 1993, when the new Russian ruble was issued, old Soviet rubles ceased to be legal tender in Russia.The Global History of Currencies - Russia In Tajikistan, pre-1993 Soviet rubles ceased to be legal tender on 8 January 1994. On 10 May 1995, the Russian ruble was replaced by the Tajikistani ruble at a rate of 100:1.
Among the republics of the former Soviet Union, Tajikistan was the last to issue its own currency. Transnistria, an unrecognized state, issued its own ruble before Tajikistan did. The reason for this was largely lack of funds and resources, with Tajikistan being the poorest of the former Soviet republics and absorbing its share of the former union's economic collapse. This was compounded further by the disorganization caused by the civil war in Tajikistan.
By the end of the decade, rampant inflation caused by economic problems had essentially destroyed the Tajikistani ruble, and plans to replace it with a new currency were drawn up in 1999.
On 30 October 2000, the somoni was introduced and replaced the ruble with 1 somoni equal to 1,000 rubles. Ruble banknotes were permitted to circulate until 1 April 2001.
Coin Only one commemorative coin was issued for the Tajikistani ruble. These were aimed for the collectors market and were never intended for use in circulation.
The commemorative Tajikistani ruble coin Value Technical parameters Description Date of minting Diameter Mass Composition Edge Obverse Reverse 20 rubles 35.1 mm 20 g 900‰ silver Reeded Ismail Samani Royal device 1999
Banknotes The Tajikistani ruble banknotes have a striking similarity to the 1961, 1991 and 1992 banknote series of the Soviet/Russian ruble, with similar size, colour scheme, positioning of objects and the font. The colour schemes can be traced back to the later issues of the Russian Empire. Many of the old printing templates used for the production of Soviet ruble notes were reused on Tajikistan's notes. This is because the Tajikistani ruble was printed under the direction of Goznak, the official Russian agency responsible for the production of banknotes and coins. While banknotes of 5000 and 10,000 rubles were printed, they were never issued for circulation.
The banknote series Image Value Dimensions Main Colour Description Date of Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse Watermark printing issue 1 ruble 102 × 55 mm Brown Coat of arms and patternsFlag of Tajikistan over Supreme Assembly (Majlisi Olii)Multi-star pattern 1994 1995 5 rubles Blue 10 rubles Red 20 rubles Lilac 50 rubles Green 100 rubles 121 × 60 mm Brown 200 rubles Olive-green and pale violet 500 rubles Dark pink 1,000 rubles 143 × 71 mm Brown and purple 1999 5,000 rubles Blue Never issued 10,000 rubles Orange
Historical exchange rates Year TJR per USD 1995 104 1996 292 1997 559 1998 781 1999 1237 2000 1550
See also
Economy of Tajikistan
References