Penny Napoleonic Wars prompted the use of base metals in 1797. Despite the decimalization of currencies in the United States and, later, throughout the British Commonwealth, the name remains in informal use. No penny is currently formally subdivided, although farthings (¼ d.), halfpennies, and half cents have previously been minted and the mill (1/10¢) remains in use as a unit of account in some contexts. "Penny" is first attested in a 1394 Scots text, a variant of Old English ', a development of numerous variations including ', ', and '. The etymology of the term "penny" is uncertain, although cognates are
Minot (unit) Minot (unit) The minot () is an old unit of dry volume, used in France prior to metrication. The unit was equivalent to three French bushels ("boisseaux"), half a "mine", and one quarter of a "setier". The size of the "minot" is comparable to the US and Imperial bushels. The name "minot" derives from the larger unit, the "mine", with an -ot diminutive suffixed. The term "mine" in this case derives from the same Greek origin as the word hemisphere, and refers to half of the larger "setier". The volumetric "mine" should not be confused with the mass unit mina,