Language and the euro it is actually written on the euro notes in Greek as . Also, the spelling (resulting in a plural ) on the notes could have confused other Europeans, who might read it as a string of Latin letters: "eypo". A plural form "evra", as if from a regular declinable neuter noun in "-o", is sometimes used in a jocular way. For the cent, the terms used in Greece are , plural ("leptó", plural "leptá"), a name used for small denominations of various ancient and modern Greek currencies, including the drachma (which the euro replaced). The word means 'minute' (literally "thin"),
Euro equal ("=") sign. Placement of the currency sign relative to the numeric amount varies from nation to nation, but for texts in English the symbol (or the ISO-standard "EUR") should precede the amount. The euro was established by the provisions in the 1992 Maastricht Treaty. To participate in the currency, member states are meant to meet strict criteria, such as a budget deficit of less than 3% of their GDP, a debt ratio of less than 60% of GDP (both of which were ultimately widely flouted after introduction), low inflation, and interest rates close to the EU average. In the