Currency: Euro (EUR) – since 2002, formerly Irish Pound (IEP)
Area: 70,273 km²
Population: ~5,100,000
Official languages: Irish, English
Government: Parliamentary Republic
ISO Code: IRL
Ireland adopted the euro (EUR) on January 1, 2002, replacing the Irish Pound (IEP), which had been introduced in 1928 after independence. The term “pound” comes from the Latin “libra,” a unit of weight used in the Roman Empire, later adopted by Britain and its former colonies.
1 euro is divided into 100 cents. During the Irish pound period, 1 pound was divided into 100 pence. The word “penny/pence” derives from Old German “pfennig” and referred to a low-value coin.
