it will not spoil by being kept, people will store it up instead of sharing it out as a chief ought to do, and thus become selfish. [...] I understand now very well what it is that makes the papālangi [white men] so selfish – it is this money! When Tonga introduced decimal currency, it decided not to call the main unit the dollar because the native word, tola, translated into a pig's snout, the soft end of a coconut, or, in vulgar language, a mouth. Paanga, on the other hand, translated into money. History The paanga was introduced on 3 April 1967. It replaced the pound at a rate of 1 pound = 2 paanga. Until 11 February 1991, the pa'anga was pegged to the Australian dollar at par. Since that time, a basket of currencies is taken and the paanga has continuously declined. Official exchange rates are released daily by the National Reserve Bank of Tonga. Coins In 1967, circulating coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 seniti and 1 and 2 paanga. The 1 and 2 seniti were struck in bronze with the other denominations in cupro-nickel. The 50 seniti, 1, and 2 paanga were only struck in small numbers as these denominations were also issued in note form. In 1974, dodecagonal (twelve-sided) 50 seniti were introduced but 50 seniti banknotes continued to be issued until 1983. In 1974, 1 seniti coins were struck in brass rather than bronze but reverted to bronze in 1975. In 1975, a new series of coins was issued, themed around FAO and food production and featuring a new portrait style effigy of the king. This was followed by another series of similar theme in 1981. 1 and 2 Pa'anga coins continued to be issued. Starting in 1978 the 1 Pa'anga coins were redesigned with an innovative, or at least unique rectangular shape while the 2 Pa'anga (depicted on the right) remained round and continued to be one of the world's largest circulating coins at the time ( diameter 44.5 millimetres/1.75 inches ), larger even than standard "English crown sized" coins. The reverses of both were changed annually to commemorate a different FAO goal or event. Later seven sided Christmas themed pa'anga coins also exist. However, due to the 2 Pa'anga coin's large size and weight and the awkward shape of the 1 pa'anga, they failed