The soum symbol
Written in 2022. This page brings together the soum symbol options we prepared for the competition.
Competition to design
the soum symbol
On 8 February 2022 the Central Bank of Uzbekistan announced a competition to create a symbol for the national currency of Uzbekistan.
The idea is that the symbol will help the Uzbek soum gain recognition around the world and “raise its international prestige in financial markets”.
But the task is not as simple as it may seem at first. Our team at MA’NO Branding has been working on this question on and off for four years.
Along the way we brought in specialists from type design, graphic design and the creative industry. Yuri Gordon, Maria Doreuli, Erken Kagarov and Denis Eliseev shared their expert views.
This page brings together everything about the project: earlier and recent work, and our team’s thinking on how the symbol should be created.
The idea is that the symbol will help the Uzbek soum gain recognition around the world and “raise its international prestige in financial markets”.
But the task is not as simple as it may seem at first. Our team at MA’NO Branding has been working on this question on and off for four years.
Along the way we brought in specialists from type design, graphic design and the creative industry. Yuri Gordon, Maria Doreuli, Erken Kagarov and Denis Eliseev shared their expert views.
This page brings together everything about the project: earlier and recent work, and our team’s thinking on how the symbol should be created.
To go straight to the concepts, follow this link.
Why a symbol is needed
Economic liberalisation, free currency convertibility and the new government’s ambitious plans for the economic development of Uzbekistan are taking the country to a new level on the world stage.
As the economy integrates with the global community, visual culture has to keep pace and meet international standards. Adopting a symbol for the national currency could be one of the key steps in changing the country’s visual culture.
With a soum symbol, Uzbekistan will join the small group of countries that are economically free and open and part of the global economy. It is an image step that strengthens the new identity of the country.
Research
Goals:
Our team approached the task with full responsibility and treated it as a complete project. The process began with research and gathering information about the field. The main goal of this stage was to get to the heart of the task and set precise criteria for the design.
The current situation with the national currency (soum) symbol
First, we looked at how the currency is marked today.
Prices and the national currency are shown in several ways:
Prices and the national currency are shown in several ways:
- A price with no currency (at markets: for goods with stable prices and for expensive items);
- No price at all (at markets: for imported goods and goods whose prices change often);
- A price with the currency shortened to “sum” (on online platforms, in supermarkets and shops).
- UZS, the international abbreviation for “Uzbekistan Soum”. Used in official documents as well as in banks, exchange offices and hotels.
Currency symbols of the world
؋: Afghani (Afghanistan);
฿: Baht (Thailand);
₿: Bitcoin;
¢: Cent;
₡: Colón (Costa Rica and El Salvador);
₵: Cedi (Ghana);
$: Dollar (USA);
₫: Dong (Vietnam);
֏: Dram (Armenia);
€: Euro;
ƒ: Florin (a coin of various European countries);
₲: Guaraní (Paraguay);
₾: Lari (Georgia);
₴: Hryvnia (Ukraine);
₭: Kip (Laos);
₺: Lira (Turkey);
฿: Baht (Thailand);
₿: Bitcoin;
¢: Cent;
₡: Colón (Costa Rica and El Salvador);
₵: Cedi (Ghana);
$: Dollar (USA);
₫: Dong (Vietnam);
֏: Dram (Armenia);
€: Euro;
ƒ: Florin (a coin of various European countries);
₲: Guaraní (Paraguay);
₾: Lari (Georgia);
₴: Hryvnia (Ukraine);
₭: Kip (Laos);
₺: Lira (Turkey);
₼: Manat (Azerbaijan);
₥: Mill (1/10 ¢);
₦: Naira (Nigeria);
₱: Peso (Philippines);
£: Pound (United Kingdom);
﷼: Rial (Iran, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Qatar);
៛: Riel (Cambodia);
ރ: Rufiyaa (Maldives);
₽: Ruble (Russia);
₨: Rupee (India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Seychelles, Mauritius);
௹: Rupee (India, Sri Lanka);
₹: Rupee (India);
৲ or ৳: Taka (Bangladesh);
૱: Rupee (Gujarat);
₪: Shekel (Israel);
₥: Mill (1/10 ¢);
₦: Naira (Nigeria);
₱: Peso (Philippines);
£: Pound (United Kingdom);
﷼: Rial (Iran, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Qatar);
៛: Riel (Cambodia);
ރ: Rufiyaa (Maldives);
₽: Ruble (Russia);
₨: Rupee (India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Seychelles, Mauritius);
௹: Rupee (India, Sri Lanka);
₹: Rupee (India);
৲ or ৳: Taka (Bangladesh);
૱: Rupee (Gujarat);
₪: Shekel (Israel);
₸: Tenge (Kazakhstan);
₮: Tögrög (Mongolia);
₩: Won (South Korea);
¥: Yen (Japan).
Symbols no longer in use:
₳: Austral;
₠: ECU;
₢: Cruzeiro;
₯: Drachma;
₣: Franc;
₤: Lira;
₶: Livre tournois;
ℳ: Mark;
₧: Peseta;
₰: Pfennig;
₷: Spesmilo.
₮: Tögrög (Mongolia);
₩: Won (South Korea);
¥: Yen (Japan).
Symbols no longer in use:
₳: Austral;
₠: ECU;
₢: Cruzeiro;
₯: Drachma;
₣: Franc;
₤: Lira;
₶: Livre tournois;
ℳ: Mark;
₧: Peseta;
₰: Pfennig;
₷: Spesmilo.
£ ¥ $ €
According to Unicode, the global standard for encoding the characters and symbols of written languages, only about thirty of the world’s currencies currently have officially registered graphic symbols.
Some of them are no longer in use, for example the symbols of the Italian lira (₤), the German mark (ℳ) and the French franc (₣), which became obsolete after the euro was introduced.
Some of them are no longer in use, for example the symbols of the Italian lira (₤), the German mark (ℳ) and the French franc (₣), which became obsolete after the euro was introduced.
A short history of young currency symbols: the hryvnia, tenge, rupee, som and ruble
These symbols were adopted between 2004 and 2017. When we started on our concepts, we made sure to take into account how these currencies adopted their symbols and the logic behind their design.
The first group of symbols was chosen through similar competitions and followed roughly the same path to adoption.
The first group of symbols was chosen through similar competitions and followed roughly the same path to adoption.
Our main reference, however, is the story of the ruble symbol, which went through the professional design community.
Before the symbol was officially adopted, a large number of entrepreneurs and designers in Russia were already using it.
Before the symbol was officially adopted, a large number of entrepreneurs and designers in Russia were already using it.
Ukrainian hryvnia
The symbol was introduced as the sign of the Ukrainian hryvnia on 1 March 2004.
The design was chosen in a competition held by the National Bank of Ukraine in 2003. The symbol was included in Unicode 4.1, published in 2005.
Читать на Wiki The design was chosen in a competition held by the National Bank of Ukraine in 2003. The symbol was included in Unicode 4.1, published in 2005.
Kazakhstani tenge
In November 2006 the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan held a competition to design a tenge symbol.
Out of 30,000 entries, a new tenge symbol was approved on 29 March 2007. Its authors, Vadim Davidenko and Sanzhar Amerkhanov, received a prize of one million tenge (about $8,000 at the exchange rate of the time) from the National Bank of Kazakhstan and another $5,000 from the Kazakh bank Alliance.
Архивная новость от Нацбанка РК Out of 30,000 entries, a new tenge symbol was approved on 29 March 2007. Its authors, Vadim Davidenko and Sanzhar Amerkhanov, received a prize of one million tenge (about $8,000 at the exchange rate of the time) from the National Bank of Kazakhstan and another $5,000 from the Kazakh bank Alliance.
Indian rupee
On 15 July 2010, following a competition for the best design of a rupee symbol, the Union Cabinet of India approved this grapheme as the symbol of the national currency.
The symbol is the Devanagari letter “र” with a stroke through its upper part. Devanagari is one of the Indian scripts and is used for several official and regional languages of India. A defining feature of the script is the top (head) horizontal line from which the letters “hang”. At the same time, the symbol is close to the Latin letter “R” without its vertical stem.
The symbol was designed by Udaya Kumar, a student at the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai, who received 250,000 rupees (about $5,500) as a reward.
Читать на Wiki The symbol is the Devanagari letter “र” with a stroke through its upper part. Devanagari is one of the Indian scripts and is used for several official and regional languages of India. A defining feature of the script is the top (head) horizontal line from which the letters “hang”. At the same time, the symbol is close to the Latin letter “R” without its vertical stem.
The symbol was designed by Udaya Kumar, a student at the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai, who received 250,000 rupees (about $5,500) as a reward.
Kyrgyz som
On 10 February 2017 a symbol for the Kyrgyz som was adopted.
To create it, a competition was held among designers, who submitted their own versions of the symbol. Under the rules, the new sign had to consist of the capital letter of the word “som” and an underline standing for “currency stability”.
Ten entries were submitted in total, including one from a working group of National Bank employees. The National Bank selected the concepts of two designers, Nikolai Bondar and Avaz Uzubekov, and awarded them the bank’s commemorative silver coins.
The winning design was the one submitted by the National Bank itself.
The symbol was included in Unicode version 14.0 in 2018. Yet despite being in Unicode, it has not come into wide use.
Новость на 24.kg To create it, a competition was held among designers, who submitted their own versions of the symbol. Under the rules, the new sign had to consist of the capital letter of the word “som” and an underline standing for “currency stability”.
Ten entries were submitted in total, including one from a working group of National Bank employees. The National Bank selected the concepts of two designers, Nikolai Bondar and Avaz Uzubekov, and awarded them the bank’s commemorative silver coins.
The winning design was the one submitted by the National Bank itself.
The symbol was included in Unicode version 14.0 in 2018. Yet despite being in Unicode, it has not come into wide use.
Russian ruble
The story of the ruble symbol is very different from the previous ones. It went through the professional community and business, and adopting it was an expression of civic and professional position.
Artemy Lebedev wrote in his Kovodstvo:
“On 1 July 2007 the law ‘On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation’ came into force in Russia, requiring a graphic symbol for the ruble to be approved. Specialists were, to put it mildly, somewhat taken aback by this law. It became clear that either professional designers would take the choice of the ruble symbol into their own hands, or everyone would once again end up with something nobody could look at without a nervous twitch (see Russian banknotes, especially their lettering).
The initiative group included Design Depot, Designet, Direct Design, Imadesign, Letterhead, ParaType and Art. Lebedev Studio. Through the summer of 2007 the designers corresponded intensively and exchanged analytical and graphic studies. As a result, they chose an option that satisfied all the initiators of the new ruble symbol, and on 1 August 2007 the chosen symbol was presented to the public...
...In the first three weeks almost four hundred design studios from across the country supported the initiative. In the year and a half since, the ruble symbol has found use both online and offline...”
In 2007 the studio published a press release on its website:
“Before the symbol was officially adopted, entrepreneurs, design studios and designers in Russia began using it on their own in every kind of communication and promoting it among the public, including the professional community. The type foundries Letterhead and ParaType began including the symbol in their new typefaces and released a set of symbols for their ‘older’ fonts. An application was submitted independently to Unicode and ISO to register the symbol with the international organisations.”
The proposed symbol became one of five finalists selected by the Bank of Russia for a public vote. In the discussion, “₽” received 61% of the votes.
On 11 December 2013 the symbol was officially adopted by the Bank of Russia.
Новость на сайте Банка России Artemy Lebedev wrote in his Kovodstvo:
“On 1 July 2007 the law ‘On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation’ came into force in Russia, requiring a graphic symbol for the ruble to be approved. Specialists were, to put it mildly, somewhat taken aback by this law. It became clear that either professional designers would take the choice of the ruble symbol into their own hands, or everyone would once again end up with something nobody could look at without a nervous twitch (see Russian banknotes, especially their lettering).
The initiative group included Design Depot, Designet, Direct Design, Imadesign, Letterhead, ParaType and Art. Lebedev Studio. Through the summer of 2007 the designers corresponded intensively and exchanged analytical and graphic studies. As a result, they chose an option that satisfied all the initiators of the new ruble symbol, and on 1 August 2007 the chosen symbol was presented to the public...
...In the first three weeks almost four hundred design studios from across the country supported the initiative. In the year and a half since, the ruble symbol has found use both online and offline...”
In 2007 the studio published a press release on its website:
“Before the symbol was officially adopted, entrepreneurs, design studios and designers in Russia began using it on their own in every kind of communication and promoting it among the public, including the professional community. The type foundries Letterhead and ParaType began including the symbol in their new typefaces and released a set of symbols for their ‘older’ fonts. An application was submitted independently to Unicode and ISO to register the symbol with the international organisations.”
The proposed symbol became one of five finalists selected by the Bank of Russia for a public vote. In the discussion, “₽” received 61% of the votes.
On 11 December 2013 the symbol was officially adopted by the Bank of Russia.
Central Bank requirements and selection criteria
The rules of the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan competition to design a symbol for the national currency, the soum
The Central Bank’s competition rules set out selection criteria and requirements for entries.
Our team singled out the following key points that deserve close attention:
We then defined additional points on which our concepts were based.
Our team singled out the following key points that deserve close attention:
- the soum symbol must be short, specific (unique), simple and universal, and keep its appearance when resized and in black and white;
- the concept of the soum symbol must include the author’s interpretation of its meaning and content (the idea, what the elements stand for and their purpose);
- the symbol must be original and recognisable, with symbolic and distinctive features;
- the concept must take into account how easily the symbol is perceived in different formats.
We then defined additional points on which our concepts were based.
Why does a currency need a symbol?
In our work we drew on the experience of colleagues across the CIS, especially in Russia.
The technical requirements for the ruble symbol, drawn up by the initiative group in 2007, became the basis for our work.
The initiative group was made up of highly experienced professionals. Unfortunately, there are no such specialists in Uzbekistan at the moment.
Below is an excerpt from the article “The Ruble Symbol: An Attempt at Analysis” by Yuri Gordon, co-owner of the Letterhead studio, type designer, illustrator and author of a book on the letters of the Cyrillic alphabet:
“A currency symbol is needed to simplify visual communication and to save space and time.
The ruble symbol needs to be adopted:
What is needed is a typeset character, a letter, not a new symbol of the country. Still, its national identity should not be forgotten. It should become one of the elements of the visual self-identification of the country.
The only absolute requirement for the symbol is that it is easy to use, remember and reproduce.
Its aesthetic qualities should come, on the one hand, from formal convenience and, on the other, from the work of type designers who turn the original grapheme into a specific typeface...”
“A currency symbol is needed to simplify visual communication and to save space and time.
The ruble symbol needs to be adopted:
- to simplify internal communication;
- to move to international standards of visual culture.
What is needed is a typeset character, a letter, not a new symbol of the country. Still, its national identity should not be forgotten. It should become one of the elements of the visual self-identification of the country.
The only absolute requirement for the symbol is that it is easy to use, remember and reproduce.
Its aesthetic qualities should come, on the one hand, from formal convenience and, on the other, from the work of type designers who turn the original grapheme into a specific typeface...”
Technical requirements for the symbol
Drawing on this experience, and in addition to the Central Bank’s requirements, we follow these criteria in designing the new soum symbol:
- Simple graphics.
- Distinct from other characters used in the main writing systems, above all Cyrillic and Latin.
- A single element. A symbol made of one grapheme reads faster and usually takes up less space. A single, non-ligature character is easier to fit into tabular setting, which matters a great deal here.
- Easy to write by hand (among other things, motor memory is the fastest and most reliable).
- Font independence. What comes into use is a symbol, a grapheme, not a character of a particular typeface. It must be adaptable for inclusion in any typeface
- Even density. No areas crowded with strokes and no tiny or unnecessary strokes. These parameters are decisive at small sizes. The symbol must not fill in at 4 pt in a text typeface.
- No wider than the widest numeral (0). An important parameter: in text typefaces, currency symbols are drawn to the width of the numerals to simplify tabular setting.
- A distinctive touch, a slight unusualness within the norm that helps the symbol be remembered and recognised.
- Intuitively clear both to people of Uzbek culture and to foreigners familiar with the Latin alphabet.
“
... I would also pay special attention to how the currency design will translate into a bold low-contrast weight (Black) of a grotesque and into a condensed bold (this is a little less important, but I would keep it in mind). Drawing bold tabular currency symbols is always the hardest part of type design: in bold weights there is very little room left for the strike-through.
Process
What to draw?
Given the requirements above, it becomes clear that the soum symbol should be built around the letter “S”. It is understood both by Uzbek-speaking citizens (here the move of Uzbek writing to the Latin alphabet helps) and by tourists.
The letter “S”, however, has two main drawbacks:
1. The best solution is already taken by the dollar.
2. The shape of the letter is very curvy, which makes it hard to build new symbols from it and to fit them into different typefaces.
We did try working with the letter S.
The letter “S”, however, has two main drawbacks:
1. The best solution is already taken by the dollar.
2. The shape of the letter is very curvy, which makes it hard to build new symbols from it and to fit them into different typefaces.
We did try working with the letter S.
First approach
First approach
Sources:
D. Karabayeva Yozuv Daftari. -T., 2017;
F. Hamidova Husnixat. Alifbega ilova. -T., 2017.
The most obvious solution was to play on the features of Uzbek writing.
Uzbekistan has still not fully switched to the Latin script.
Alongside Latin (so'm), Cyrillic (сўм) is widely used.
Uzbekistan has still not fully switched to the Latin script.
Alongside Latin (so'm), Cyrillic (сўм) is widely used.
- However, the word “сўм” typed in Latin looks noticeably different from how it is written by hand. This is because of the diacritic letters and their replacement with two-character combinations in print:
Combining the Latin and Cyrillic forms gave a lowercase “s” with a breve above it. It is graphically clean and easy to understand.
This is the simplest solution: add a little cap to the S. This option has both a concept and a very convenient path to adoption.
This is the simplest solution: add a little cap to the S. This option has both a concept and a very convenient path to adoption.
However, this solution has a number of drawbacks:
- No visual kinship with existing currency symbols;
- A lowercase letter instead of a capital, unlike most currency symbols;
- Distortion in quick handwriting. People who learned Uzbek writing in the Latin script may replace the breve with a tilde (~) when writing by hand
Choosing the concepts
All the options our team developed were analysed in the same way.
Weighing the pros and cons let us pick the best solutions from a large number of concepts.
Weighing the pros and cons let us pick the best solutions from a large number of concepts.
Comments from Maria Doreuli
Maria Doreuli, founder and creative director of the type studio Contrast Foundry and the Type Design Workshop, also shared her comments.
Maria commented on each option and settled on symbol number 7.
The most promising option was the letter S with a bar through the middle.
Maria commented on each option and settled on symbol number 7.
The most promising option was the letter S with a bar through the middle.
Alternatives
Having worked through the “S” option, the team also explored ligatures (on Yuri’s advice) and various letter combinations. Because of the complex construction of the S, however, none of these options were selected: they proved impossible to fit into tabular setting in bold weights.
Below is a “US” ligature by type designer Tamara Arkatova.
Below is a “US” ligature by type designer Tamara Arkatova.
The work resulted in three concepts. Two of them are built on the “S”, and the third is an alternative.
Option 1
Concept
The first option is a symbol built by all the rules of world currency symbols: a capital S crossed by a horizontal stroke through the middle. Simple, yet original.
The sketch of the grapheme was drawn by hand, deliberately loosely, to reduce the influence of aesthetics.
The sketch of the grapheme was drawn by hand, deliberately loosely, to reduce the influence of aesthetics.
The symbol fits easily into any typeface.
In everyday use
Meeting the technical requirements
Pros:
- Simple graphics;
- Based on the grapheme S;
- Font independent. The symbol fits into any typeface;
- Visual kinship with currency symbols thanks to the stroke crossing the letter;
- Easy to write.
Cons:
- Wider than the 0. It has to be narrowed, a classic S will not do.
- High density and dark spots at the intersections. Solved by thinning the strokes where they cross the horizontal bar.
- Distortion in quick handwriting. The symbol can be confused with the letter f.
- Similar symbols exist (“S” with a diagonal stroke and “s” with a tilde). The “S” with a diagonal stroke is no longer used in any language.
Option 2
Concept
The second option is also built by all the rules of world currency symbols: a capital S crossed by horizontal strokes through the middle.
The sketch of the grapheme was drawn by hand, deliberately loosely, to reduce the influence of aesthetics.
The sketch of the grapheme was drawn by hand, deliberately loosely, to reduce the influence of aesthetics.
The symbol fits easily into any typeface.
In everyday use
Meeting the technical requirements
Pros:
- Simple graphics;
- Based on the grapheme S;
- Font independent. The symbol fits into any typeface;
- Visual kinship with currency symbols thanks to the stroke crossing the letter;
- Easy to write.
Cons:
- The main drawback is its similarity to the Ukrainian hryvnia.
- Wider than the 0. It has to be narrowed, a classic S will not do.
- High density and dark spots at the intersections. Solved by thinning the stroke where it crosses the horizontal lines.
“
... not using this option would be a mistake in the long run. Someone bolder will use it later, and you will regret it.
That was Yuri Gordon’s comment on this option, so we decided to keep it in the entry.
That was Yuri Gordon’s comment on this option, so we decided to keep it in the entry.
Option 3
Concept
The previous options were based on the shape of the letter S, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Conceptually, though, they are simply currency symbols marking the first letter of the soum, purely practical in nature.
The third option takes a more metaphorical approach.
It is based on the shapes of the national flag and coat of arms: overlaying them produced a new symbol. Once adapted to typefaces, it became a “U” crossed by two strokes.
In the new approach the work began with a UZ ligature. Here too two letters were overlaid, which produced a strong symbol.
With the technical requirements in mind, the diagonal stroke of the Z was removed, and the result was the same symbol: a “U” crossed by two strokes.
The third option takes a more metaphorical approach.
It is based on the shapes of the national flag and coat of arms: overlaying them produced a new symbol. Once adapted to typefaces, it became a “U” crossed by two strokes.
In the new approach the work began with a UZ ligature. Here too two letters were overlaid, which produced a strong symbol.
With the technical requirements in mind, the diagonal stroke of the Z was removed, and the result was the same symbol: a “U” crossed by two strokes.
The third symbol is simple and clear, has the features of a currency symbol and points to Uzbekistan. It fits easily into any typeface.
In everyday use
Meeting the technical requirements
Pros:
- Simple graphics;
- Distinct from other symbols;
- Font independent. The symbol fits into any typeface;
- Visual kinship with currency symbols;
- Easy to write;
- A single element;
- Easy to write by hand;
- A strong idea.
Cons:
It is not intuitive. The symbol does not point to the first letter of the currency’s name, as the euro, yen, hryvnia and ruble symbols do.
Then again, the dollar and the pound are not marked by their first letters either.
To overcome this barrier the symbol needs mass use. Over time it will be remembered and the questions will go away.
It is not intuitive. The symbol does not point to the first letter of the currency’s name, as the euro, yen, hryvnia and ruble symbols do.
Then again, the dollar and the pound are not marked by their first letters either.
To overcome this barrier the symbol needs mass use. Over time it will be remembered and the questions will go away.
Overview of the options
Our team unanimously prefers the third option because it is simple and at the same time unique.
Next steps
Choosing the concept and refining the grapheme.
Choosing the concept and the competition winner. Refining the grapheme for use in popular typefaces.
Legal approval
Official adoption of the symbol and its approval in law.
Mass use
Using the symbol in every possible channel.
Getting a Unicode code point
Applying to the Unicode Consortium and obtaining a code point in Unicode.
Our team is ready to help and advise at every following stage of the project.
Project team:
Elina Seitova, Temur Sadi, Zokir Khalmatov, Adelya Uzyakova, Mansur Nabiev, Murat Risbikov, Anastasia Kim, Tamara Arkatova, Alina Vagapova, Mukhtarambonu Khanbabaeva, Alyona Matyushina, Stepan Litvinov.
Consultants:
Maria Doreuli, Yuri Gordon, Erken Kagarov, Denis Eliseev
Elina Seitova, Temur Sadi, Zokir Khalmatov, Adelya Uzyakova, Mansur Nabiev, Murat Risbikov, Anastasia Kim, Tamara Arkatova, Alina Vagapova, Mukhtarambonu Khanbabaeva, Alyona Matyushina, Stepan Litvinov.
Consultants:
Maria Doreuli, Yuri Gordon, Erken Kagarov, Denis Eliseev