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The '''lek''' ({{lang-langx|sq|leku shqiptar}}; indefinite singular ''lek'', definite plural ''lekët'', indefinite plural ''lekë''; [[Currency symbol|sign]]: '''L''';<ref>{{cite book|chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_World_Factbook_(1990)/Albania|title=CIA World Factbook 1990 - page 3 |chapter=Albania |date=1 April 1990 |access-date=2022-06-22 }}</ref> [[ISO 4217|code]]: '''ALL''') is the [[currency]] of [[Albania]]. Historically, it was subdivided into 100 ''qintars'' ({{lang-langx|sq|qindarka}}; singular ''qindarkë'').
==History==
===Gold standard===
From 1926–1939, the Albanian leke adhered to the [[gold standard]] ''de jure'' with leke banknotes being convertible to gold. The leke's conversion to gold was guaranteed and the issue of gold francs was limited to three million units.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ceca |first1=Kliti |last2=Rexha |first2=Kelmend |last3=Orhan |first3=Elsida |title=Banking and Finance in South-Eastern Europe: the Albanian Case |journal=Bank of Greece |date=2008 |volume=84 |ssrn=4165566 |url=https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4165566 |access-date=18 November 2023}}</ref> Due to the gold standard, up until 1939, the leke did not experience significant inflation and the currency in circulation remained relatively constant.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jürgen Fischer |first1=Bernd |title=Albania at War 1939-1945 |date=1999 |publisher=C Hurst & Co |location=United Kingdom |isbn=1-85065-531-6 |page=48}}</ref> Following the [[Italian invasion of Albania]], the entire gold reserves of Albania, totaling 300,000 gold francs, were confiscated and sent to the [[Reichsbank]] in Berlin. This action, coupled with the introduction of the Italian lira in Albania, led to significant inflation and the devaluation of the lekleke.<ref>{{cite book |last1=State |first1=US Dept of. |title=Foreign Relations of the United States: 1946 |date=1970 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |location=United States of America |page=806}}</ref>
===Etymology===
The leknaming wasof this currency as "Lek" has two stories, one is that it is named after [[Alexander the Great]],<ref name="DunklingRoom1990">{{cite book|author1=Leslie Alan Dunkling|author2=Adrian Room|title=The Guinness Book of Money|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MbSaAAAAIAAJ|date=1 January 1990|publisher=Guinness Publishing|isbn=978-0-85112-399-8|page=67|quote="...the lek takes its name from the abbreviated name of Alexander the Great, who was associated with this region of Europe..."}}</ref> whose name is often shortened to ''Leka'' in Albanian.<ref name="Berlin2006">{{cite book|author=Howard M. Berlin|title=World Monetary Units: An Historical Dictionary, Country By Country|url=https://archive.org/details/worldmonetaryuni00berl|url-access=registration|year=2006|publisher=McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub|isbn=978-0-7864-2080-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/worldmonetaryuni00berl/page/8 8]|quote="...The current monetary unit, the lek, is derived from the abbreviation of the Albanian spelling of Alexander the Great..."}}</ref> where Alexander's portrait appeared on the [[obverse and reverse|obverse]] of the 1 lek coin, while the reverse showed him on his horse. Meanwhile, the other is that this currency was named after [[Lekë Dukagjini]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.panorama.com.al/historia-e-lekut-nga-e-ka-prejardhjen-monedha-shqiptare-nga-emri-i-skenderbeut-aleksandrit-apo-lekes-se-madh-per-here-te-pare-u-perdor-nga/|title=Historia e lekut/ Nga e ka prejardhjen monedha shqiptare! Nga emri i Skënderbeut, Aleksandrit apo Lekës së Madh! Për herë të parë u përdor nga...|trans-title=The history of the lek/ Where does the Albanian currency come from! From the name of Skanderbeg, Alexander or Lek the Great! It was first used by...|language=Albanian|publisher=[[Panorama (Albania)|Panorama]]|date=14 March 2024}}</ref> which is considered the official reason based on parliamentary discussions in the [[Parliament of Albania]] in 1922.<ref>{{cite book|title=Bisedime Parlamentare 1922/1|trans-title=Parliamentary Discussions 1922/1|language=Albanian|year=2012|page=312}}</ref> The word ''qindarkë'' comes from the [[Albanian language|Albanian]] ''qind'', meaning one hundred, or from [[Arabic]] ''qintār'' ("hundredweight"). The word is thus comparable to ''[[centime]]'', [[Cent (currency)|cent]], Latin ''centenarius'', etc.
The word ''qindarkë'' comes from the [[Albanian language|Albanian]] ''qind'', meaning one hundred, or from [[Arabic]] ''qintār'' ("hundredweight"). The word is thus comparable to ''[[centime]]'', [[Cent (currency)|cent]], Latin ''centenarius'', etc.
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Since 2011 the 100 lek banknote has been removed out of circulation.
====2019–2022 series====
* [[Economy of Albania]]
==Notes==
{{Notelist}}
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