View source for Pound sign

{{Short description|Currency sign}}
{{About|the currency symbols "£" and "₤"|the sign "#"|Number sign|the sign "lb"|pound (mass)}}
{{Infobox currency sign|mark=£
|unicode={{unichar|00A3|Pound sign|html=}}
|currency = [[Pound (currency)|Pound]]
|different from={{unichar|20A4|Lira sign|nlink=Lira#Lira sign}} <br /> {{unichar|0023|Number sign|nlink=Number sign}}
|variant1={{not a typo|￡}}
|variant1 caption={{unichar|FFE1|Fullwidth pound sign|nlink=Halfwidth and fullwidth forms}}
}}
[[File:Pound sign fonts.svg|thumb|The £ [[grapheme]] in a selection of [[font]]s]]

The '''pound sign''' ({{char|£}}) is the [[currency symbol|symbol]] for the pound [[unit of account|unit]] of [[Pound sterling|sterling]] – the [[currency]] of the [[United Kingdom]] and its associated [[Crown Dependencies]] and [[British Overseas Territories]] and previously of [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] and of the [[Kingdom of England]]. The same symbol is used for other currencies called [[pound (currency)|pound]], such as the [[Egyptian pound|Egyptian]] and [[Syrian pound|Syrian]] pounds. The sign may be drawn with one or two bars depending on personal preference, but the [[Bank of England]] has used the one-bar style exclusively on banknotes since 1975.<!-- Cited in body per [[wp:LEADCITE]], no need to cite here. -->

In the United States, "pound sign" refers to the symbol {{char|#}} ([[number sign]]). In Canada, "pound sign" can mean {{char|£}} or  {{char|#}}.

==Origin==
The symbol derives from the upper case [[Latin letter]] {{char|L}}, representing ''libra pondo'', the basic unit of weight in the [[Roman Empire]], which in turn is derived from the [[Latin]] word ''libra'', meaning [[Weighing scale|scales]] or a balance. The pound became an [[Kingdom of England|English]] unit of weight and in England became defined as the [[Pound (weight)#Tower pound|tower pound]] (equivalent to 350 grams) of [[sterling silver]].<ref name= "ViewOfCoinage">{{cite book|title=A View of the Silver Coin and Coinage of England from the Norman Conquest to the Present Time|publisher=T. Snelling|date= 1762| author = Thomas Snelling |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_12AGAAAAQAAJ |page=ii |access-date=19 September 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dozenalsociety.org.uk/history/poundhist.html |title=A brief history of the pound |publisher=The Dozenal Society of Great Britain |access-date=2011-01-14 |archive-date=2020-11-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112000041/http://www.dozenalsociety.org.uk/history/poundhist.html |url-status=live }}</ref> According to the [[Royal Mint Museum]]:
{{quote |It is not known for certain when the horizontal line or lines, which indicate an abbreviation,{{efn|See [[scribal abbreviations]]}} first came to be drawn through the L. However, there is in the [[Bank of England Museum]] a cheque dated 7 January 1661 with a clearly discernible £ sign. By the time the Bank was founded in 1694 the £ sign was in common use.<ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.royalmintmuseum.org.uk/Default.aspx?PageID=14314417 | title=The Origins of £sd | publisher=The Royal Mint Museum |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200308111135/http://www.royalmintmuseum.org.uk/Default.aspx?PageID=14314417 |archive-date= 8 March 2020}}</ref>}}

However, the simple letter L, in lower- or uppercase, was used to represent the pound in printed books and newspapers until well into the 19th century.<ref>For example, {{cite web | url = https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Diary_of_Samuel_Pepys/1660/January | title = Diary of Samuel Pepys/1660/January | author = Samuel Pepys | date = 2 January 1660 | access-date = 23 September 2019 | archive-date = 23 September 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190923210619/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Diary_of_Samuel_Pepys/1660/January | url-status = live }} ''Then I went to Mr. Crew's and borrowed L10 of Mr. Andrewes for my own use, and so went to my office, where there was nothing to do''.</ref> In the [[blackletter]] type used until the seventeenth century,<ref>{{Cite book|title=An introduction to the history of printing types; an illustrated summary of main stages in the development of type design from 1440 up to the present day: an aid to type face identification.|last=Dowding|first=Geoffrey|publisher=Wace|year=1962|location=Clerkenwell [London]|pages=5}}</ref> the letter L is rendered as <math>\mathfrak{L}</math>.

==Usage==
When used for sterling, the pound sign is placed before the numerals (e.g., £12,000) and separated from the following digits by no space or only a [[thin space]]. In the UK, the sign is used without any prefix. In [[Egypt]] and [[Lebanon]], a disambiguating letter is added ([[Egyptian pound|E£]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/egp.asp |title=Egyptian Pound (EGP) Definition |website=Investopedia |first=Adam |last=Hayes |date=22 April 2022 |access-date=24 August 2022 |archive-date=7 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807225735/https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/egp.asp |url-status=live }}</ref> or £E<ref>{{cite news | work=Daily News Egypt |url=https://dailynewsegypt.com/2008/06/10/alexandria-city-center-to-undergo-le-370-million-expansion/ | title=Alexandria City Center to undergo LE 370 million expansion |date=10 June 2008 }}</ref> and [[Lebanese pound|£L]]<ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_World_Factbook_(1990)/Lebanon |title=CIA World Factbook 1990 - page 178 |chapter=Lebanon |via=en.wikisource.org |date=1 April 1990 |publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]] |access-date=2022-06-21 |archive-date=2022-06-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220621215739/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_World_Factbook_(1990)/Lebanon |url-status=live }}</ref> respectively). In international banking and [[foreign exchange]] operations, the symbol is rarely used: the [[ISO 4217]] currency code (e.g., GBP, EGP, etc.) is preferred.{{efn|Prior to ISO 4217, abbreviations such as "stg" or "STG" were traditionally used to disambiguate sterling from other currencies that used the symbol.}}

== Other English variants ==
In [[Canadian English]], the symbol {{char|£}} is called the pound sign. The symbol {{char|#}} has several uses and is sometimes called the pound sign too, though it is most often known as the number sign.<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Barber|editor1-first= Katherine|title=The Canadian Oxford dictionary|date=2004|publisher= Oxford University Press |location=Toronto|isbn=0-19-541816-6|edition=2nd}}</ref> (Telephone instructions for equipment manufactured in the United States often call {{char|#}} the pound key.)

In [[American English]], the term "pound sign" usually refers to the symbol {{char|#}} ([[number sign]]), and the corresponding telephone key is called the "pound key".<ref name="nyt">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/24/magazine/on-language-hit-the-pound-sign.html | title=On Language; Hit the Pound Sign | author=William Safire | author-link=William Safire | work=[[New York Times]] | access-date=2011-05-21 | date=1991-03-24 | archive-date=2010-07-21 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100721065416/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/24/magazine/on-language-hit-the-pound-sign.html | url-status=live }}</ref> (As in Canada, the # symbol has many [[number sign|other uses]].)

==Historic variants==
===Double bar style <span class="anchor" id="Lira"></span>===
Banknotes issued by the [[Bank of England]] since 1975 have used only the single bar style as a pound sign.<ref name=BoEoldnotes>{{cite web | url =  https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/withdrawn-banknotes | title =  Withdrawn banknotes | publisher =  [[Bank of England]] | access-date =  13 September 2019 | archive-date =  15 January 2019 | archive-url =  https://web.archive.org/web/20190115092327/https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/withdrawn-banknotes | url-status =  live }} ("£1 1st Series Treasury Issue" to "£5 Series B")</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/current-banknotes | title = Current banknotes | publisher = [[Bank of England]] | access-date = 8 November 2019 | archive-date = 4 December 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191204081441/https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/current-banknotes | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="BoE-FoI">{{cite web | title=History of the use of the single crossbar pound sign on Bank of England's banknotes | url=https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/freedom-of-information/2022/history-of-the-use-of-the-single-crossbar-pound-sign-on-banknotes | publisher=Bank of England | access-date=13 April 2022 | archive-date=25 March 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220325080653/https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/freedom-of-information/2022/history-of-the-use-of-the-single-crossbar-pound-sign-on-banknotes | url-status=live }}</ref> The bank used both the two-bar style ({{char|₤}}) and the one-bar style ({{char|£}}) (and sometimes a figure without any symbol whatever) more or less equally from 1725 to 1971 intermittently and sometimes concurrently.<ref name=BoEoldnotes />  In [[typography]], the symbols are [[allograph]]s{{snd}} style choices{{snd}} when used to represent the pound; consequently fonts use {{unichar|00A3|pound sign}} ([[Unicode]]) [[code point]] irrespective of which style chosen, (not {{unichar|20A4|lira sign|nlink=Lira#Lira sign}} despite its similarity). It is a [[font design]] choice on how to draw the symbol at U+00A3.<ref name="BoE-FoI" /> Although most [[computer fonts]] do so with one bar, the two-bar style is not rare, as may be seen in the illustration above.

===Other===
[[file:CaslonSp.svg|thumb|Note the leading J of Jacquard]]
In the eighteenth-century [[Caslon]] metal fonts, the pound sign was identical to an italic uppercase [[J]], rotated 180 degrees.<ref name="Caslon's punches and matrices Howes">{{cite journal|last1=Howes|first1= Justin|title=Caslon's punches and matrices|journal=Matrix|date=2000|volume=20|pages=1–7}}</ref>

== Currencies that use the pound sign ==
* Egypt: [[Egyptian pound]]
* Falkland Islands: [[Falkland Islands pound]]
*Gibraltar: [[Gibraltar pound]]
* Guernsey: [[Guernsey pound]]
* Isle of Man: [[Manx pound]]
* Jersey: [[Jersey pound]]
* Saint Helena: [[Saint Helena pound]]
* South Sudan: [[South Sudanese pound]]
* Sudan: [[Sudanese pound]]
* Syria: [[Syrian pound]]
* United Kingdom: [[Pound sterling]]

===Former currencies ===

* American Colonies:
** [[Connecticut pound]]
** [[Delaware pound]]
** [[Georgia pound]]
** [[Maryland pound]]
** [[New Hampshire pound]]
** [[New Jersey pound]]
** [[New York pound]]
** [[North Carolina pound]]
** [[Pennsylvania pound]]
** [[Rhode Island pound]]
** [[South Carolina pound]]
** [[Virginia pound]]
* Australia: [[Australian pound]]
* The Bahamas: [[Bahamian pound]]
* Bermuda: [[Bermudian pound]]
* British Mandatory Palestine: [[Palestine pound]]
* Canada: [[Canadian pound]]
** [[New Brunswick pound]]
** [[Nova Scotian pound]]
** [[Prince Edward Island pound]]
* Cyprus: [[Cypriot pound]]
* Fiji: [[Fijian pound]]
* The Gambia: [[Gambian pound]]
* Ghana: [[Ghanaian pound]]
* Ireland: [[Irish pound]]
* Israel: [[Israeli pound]]
* Malta: [[Maltese pound]]
* Newfoundland: [[Newfoundland pound]]
* New Zealand: [[New Zealand pound]]
* Rhodesia: [[Rhodesian pound]]
* South Africa: [[South African pound]]
* Tonga: [[Tongan pound]]
* Western Samoa: [[Western Samoan pound]]
* Yemen : [[Yemeni dinar]]

== Use with computers <span class="anchor" id="Unicode"></span> <span class="anchor" id="code points"></span> ==
In the [[Unicode]] standard, the pound sign is encoded at {{unichar|00A3|Pound sign|html=}}<ref name="unicode">{{cite web |url=https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0080.pdf |date=11 June 2015 |title=The Unicode Standard, Version 10.0 &#124; Character Code Charts |vauthors=((The Unicode Consortium)) |access-date=2018-01-23 |archive-date=2019-06-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613180628/https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0080.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Whether the glyph is drawn with one or two bars is a [[type designer]]'s choice as explained above; the key point is that the code is constant irrespective of the presentation chosen.{{efn|There is a separate code point, {{unichar|20A4|Lira sign|html=}}<ref name="unicode2">{{cite web |url=https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U20A0.pdf |date=26 August 2015 |title=The Unicode Standard, Version 10.0 &#124; Character Code Charts |vauthors=((The Unicode Consortium)) |access-date=2018-01-23 |archive-date=2021-02-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225021252/https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U20A0.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Unicode notes that the "[[lira sign]]" is not widely used and was added due to both it and the pound sign being available on [[HP Roman|HP printers]].<ref name="Unicode_80_Lira">{{cite book |title=The Unicode Standard - Version 8.0 - Core Specification - Chapter 22.1. Currency Symbols |date=August 2015 |orig-year=1991 |editor-first1=Julie D. |editor-last1=Allen <!-- |editor2=et al. --> |publisher=[[Unicode, Inc.]] |location=Mountain View, CA, USA |pages=751–752 |isbn=978-1-936213-10-8 |url=https://www.unicode.org/versions/Unicode8.0.0/ch22.pdf |access-date=2016-12-06 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161206230132/http://www.unicode.org/versions/Unicode8.0.0/ch22.pdf |archive-date=2016-12-06 |quote=[...] Currency Symbols: U+20A0–U+20CF [...] Lira Sign. A separate currency sign U+20A4 LIRA SIGN is encoded for compatibility with the ''HP Roman-8'' character set, which is still widely implemented in printers. In general, U+00A3 POUND SIGN may be used for both the various currencies known as pound (or punt) and the currencies known as lira. [...]}}</ref> }}

The encoding of the £ symbol in position xA3 (163<sub>10</sub>) was first standardised by [[ISO Latin-1]] (an "[[extended ASCII]]") in 1985. Position xA3 was used by the [[Digital Equipment Corporation]] [[VT220]] terminal, [[Mac OS Roman]], [[Amstrad CPC]], [[Amiga]], and [[Acorn Archimedes]].

Many early computers (limited to a 7-bit, 128-position [[character set]]) used a variant of [[ASCII]] with one of the less-frequently used characters replaced by the £. The UK national variant of [[ISO 646]] was standardised as BS 4730 in 1985. This code was identical to ASCII except for two characters: x23 encoded {{char|£}} instead of {{char|#}}, while x7E encoded {{char|‾}} ([[overline]]) instead of {{char|~}} ([[tilde]]). [[MS-DOS]] on the [[IBM PC]]  originally used a proprietary 8-bit character set [[Code page 437]] in which the £ symbol was encoded as x9C; adoption of the [[ISO/IEC 8859-1]] ("ISO Latin-1") standard code xA3 only came later with [[Microsoft Windows]]. The [[Atari ST]] also used position x9C. The [[HP LaserJet]] used position xBA (ISO/IEC 8859-1: {{char|º}}) for the £ symbol, while most other printers used x9C. The BBC [[Ceefax]] system which dated from 1976 encoded the £ as x23. The [[Sinclair Research|Sinclair]] [[ZX80]] and [[ZX81]] characters sets used x0C (ASCII: [[form feed]]). The [[ZX Spectrum]] and the [[BBC Micro]] used x60 (ASCII:  {{char|`}}, [[grave (accent)|grave]]). The [[Commodore 64]] used x5C (ASCII: {{char|\}}) while the [[Oric computers]] used x5F (ASCII: {{char|_}}). [[IBM]]'s [[EBCDIC]]  code page 037 uses xB1 for the £ while its code page 285 uses x5B. [[International Computers Limited|ICL]]'s [[ICT 1900 series|1900-series]] mainframes used a six-bit (64-position character set) encoding for characters, loosely based on BS 4730, with the £ symbol represented as [[octal]] 23 (hex 13, dec 19).

== Entry methods ==
{{more citations needed|section|date=November 2019}}

=== Typewriters ===
[[Typewriter]]s produced for the British market included a "£" sign from the earliest days, though its position varied widely. A 1921 advertisement for an [[Imperial Typewriters]] model D, for example<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Imperial_Typewriter_Co|title=Imperial Typewriter Co|website=www.gracesguide.co.uk|access-date=2017-11-12|archive-date=2017-11-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171112074206/https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Imperial_Typewriter_Co|url-status=live}}</ref> shows a machine with two modifier shifts (CAPS and FIG), with the "£" sign occupying the FIG shift position on the key for letter "B". But the advertisement notes that "We make special keyboards containing symbols, fractions, signs, etc., for the peculiar needs of Engineers, Builders, Architects, Chemists, Scientists, etc., or any staple trade."

On Latin-alphabet typewriters lacking a "£" symbol type element, a reasonable approximation could be made by [[overstrike|overtyping]] an "f"  over an "L". Historically, "L" overtyped with a hyphen or an equals sign was also used.<ref>see for example {{Citation |last=e.V |first=Unbekannte Autoren und Grafiker; Scan vom EDHAC |title=Share of the Barnum and Bailey Ltd, issued 24. January 1902 |date=1902-01-24 |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AArt_detail%2C_stock_certificate_-_Barnum_%26_Bailey_1902_%28cropped%29.jpg |access-date=2024-08-26 |archive-date=2024-12-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241204152619/https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Art_detail,_stock_certificate_-_Barnum_%26_Bailey_1902_(cropped).jpg |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Compose key ===
The [[compose key]] sequence is:<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tuttle.github.io/python-useful/compose-key-cheat-sheet.html | title = Compose Key cheat sheet | website= [[GitHub]] | access-date= 12 November 2019}} (Caution: the 'additional' method suggested, Compose/l/=, should produce a lira sign U+20A4 rather than a pound sign).</ref>
*  {{keypress|Compose|L|-}}

=== Windows, Linux, Unix ===
On [[Microsoft Windows]], [[Linux]] and [[Unix]], the [[UK keyboard layout]] has the "£" symbol on the 3 number key and is typed using:
* {{keypress|Shift|3}}

On a [[US-International]] keyboard in Windows,<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.csbsju.edu/Documents/MCL/resource/use-int-keyboard.pdf | title = Using the US International Keyboard Layout | publisher = [[College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University]] | access-date = 14 November 2019 | archive-date = 7 September 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200907180437/https://www.csbsju.edu/Documents/MCL/resource/use-int-keyboard.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> the "£" can be entered using:
* {{keypress|Shift|[[AltGr]]|4}}
* {{keypress|Shift|Right Alt|4}} (on keyboards without an engraved AltGr key)

On a US-International keyboard in Linux and Unix, the "£" can be entered using:
* {{keypress|Ctrl|Shift|U}} followed by {{keypress|a}} {{keypress|3}}
* {{keypress|Shift|[[AltGr]]|3}}

In Windows, it may also be generated through the [[Windows Alt keycodes|Alt keycodes]], although the results vary depending on factors such as the locale, codepage and OS version:
* {{keypress|Alt}}+{{keypress|0}}{{keypress|1}}{{keypress|6}}{{keypress|3}} (keeping Alt pressed until all 4 digits have been typed on the [[numeric keypad]] only)
* {{keypress|Alt}}+{{key press|1}}{{key press|5}}{{key press|6}} (this also works in [[MS-DOS]])

Windows also supports the combination  {{keypress|Shift|Ctrl|Alt|4}} but this combination may be overridden by applications for other purposes.

The [[Character Map (Windows)|Character Map]] utility and [[Microsoft Word]]'s "Insert Symbol" commands may also be used to enter this character.{{efn|These facilities also offer the similar symbol {{angbr|₤}}, the [[Italian lira]] sign. This symbol will be not be interpreted as a pound sign  in Excel etc. If the two-bar form is really needed, the solution is to select the standard {{angbr|£}} sign and apply an appropriate font.}}

=== Mac OS ===
The symbol "£" is in the [[MacRoman]] character set and can be generated on most non-UK [[Mac OS]] keyboard layouts which do not have a dedicated key for it, typically through:
* {{keypress|[[Option key|Option]]|3}}
On UK Apple Mac keyboards, this is reversed, with the "£" symbol on the number 3 key, typed using:
* {{keypress|Shift|3}} (and the [[number sign]] "#" generated by {{keypress|Option|3}})

===Android===
Pressing and holding the local currency sign will invoke a pop-up box presenting an array of currency signs, from which the pound sign may be chosen.<ref>{{cite news| url = https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/08/technology/personaltech/how-to-add-currency-symbols-to-text-in-android.html | title = TECH TIP: How to Add Currency Symbols to Text in Android | newspaper = [[New York Times]] | date = 7 January 2016 | author = J. D. Biersdorfer | access-date=12 November 2019}}</ref>

== Other uses ==
The logo of the [[UK Independence Party]], a British [[political party]], is based on the pound sign,<ref>{{cite web |title=UK Independence Party |url=http://www.ukip.org/ |access-date=17 April 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 August 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000824101630/http://www.ukip.org/ }}</ref> symbolising the party's opposition to adoption of the [[euro]] and to the [[European Union]] generally.

A symbol that appears to be a double-barred pound sign is used as the logo of the record label [[Parlophone]]. In fact this is a stylised version of a [[Fraktur]] L (<math>\mathfrak{L}</math>), standing for Lindström (the firm's founder [[Carl Lindström Company|Carl Lindström]]).

The pound sign was used as an uppercase letter (the lowercase being {{angbr|ſ}}, [[long s]]) to signify the sound {{IPAblink|ʒ}} in the early 1993–1995 version of the [[Turkmen alphabet|Turkmen Latin alphabet]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Clement |first=Victoria |date=2008 |title=Emblems of independence: script choice in post-Soviet Turkmenistan in the 1990s |journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Language |number=192 |pages=171–185}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[Ł|Latin letter L with stroke]] {{char|Ł ł}}
*[[Semuncia]] {{char|𐆒}}
*[[:Category:Currency symbols]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Currency symbols}}

[[Category:Currency symbols]]