The currency symbol or currency abbreviation for the North Korean won (KPW), the currency for North Korea. The won is divided into 100 chon and is often presented with the symbol W. The word "won" is a hybrid of the Chinese word "yuan" and Japanese "yen". 



|||The won was first seen in 1947, replacing the previous Korean yen. It underwent a 100:1 revaluation in 1959. The North Korean government abandoned the set exchange rate with the U.S. dollar in 2001, and the real exchange rate has dropped precipitously since then.