"Fulus" redirects here. For the modern unit of account, see
Fils (currency).
Medieval copper coin issued by the Umayyad caliphate
The fals (
Arabic: فلس,
romanized: fals, plural fulus) was a medieval copper
coin first produced by the
Umayyad caliphate (661–750) beginning in the late 7th century. The name of the coin is derived from the follis, a
Roman and later
Byzantine copper coin.[1] The fals usually featured ornate
Arabic script on both sides. Various copper fals were produced until the 19th century. Their weight varied, from one gram to ten grams or more.
The term is still used in modern spoken Arabic for money, but pronounced 'fils'.[2] The plural form fulus فلوس is used in contemporary dialects of Arabic (e.g. Egyptian, Iraqi) as a general term for "money". The French term folous is borrowed from Arabic. It is also absorbed into
Malay language through the word fulusفولوس.[3]
In popular culture
The Malay derivant fulus was used as basis for naming the fictional setting of Metrofulus in the 2006 Malaysian superhero film Cicakman.