Centavo

One Centavo (from the Latin centum "hundred", via the Spanish or Portuguese word cento ) is in many, especially in Spanish or Portuguese speaking countries the smallest currency unit ( one hundredth of the base unit, especially one hundredth peso or one hundredth Escudo ).

Currently ( October 2006) the centavo in the following countries will be used (in brackets the name of the base unit ):

• Argentina (Peso )
• Bolivia ( Boliviano )
• Brazil ( Real)
• Chile (Peso )
• Dominican Republic (Peso )
• El Salvador (Colón )
• Guatemala ( Quetzal )
• Honduras ( Lempira )
• Cape Verde ( Escudo )
• Colombia (Peso )
• Cuba (Peso )
• Mexico (Peso )
• Mozambique ( Metical )
• Nicaragua ( Cordoba Oro )
• Philippines (Peso )

, the coins are, however, dominated the country further in East Timor and Ecuador, where the U.S. dollar and local currency is not cents, but in East Timor centavo centavo or del Sucre in hot.

There used centavos even in

• Ecuador (Sucre, 1884-2000; still exists the centavo as a subunit of the U.S. dollar )
• Guinea (Peso, -1997 )
• Paraguay (Peso, -1943 )
• Peru ( Sol, -1985 )
• Portugal ( Escudo, -1999/2002 )

In Portugal, the centavo was, however, long before the introduction of the euro is no longer in use.

In Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Nicaragua and East Timor centavo was already the name for one hundredth of one or more predecessors to today's valid currency.