The word ruble traces back to the 14th century when it served as a weight measurement for silver and gold across Russian territories. A birch bark manuscript from Novgorod dated to the 13th century records both ruble and grivna referring to equal amounts of silver.
The first chronicle mention of the ruble appears under the year 1316 during the reign of Dmitry Donskoy who issued both the ruble and a smaller coin known as the denga. Regional value differences existed between cities like Novgorod and Moscow where one accounting ruble equaled either 100 Novgorod dengi or 200 Moscow dengi depending on local standards.
The ISO code RUR assigned number 810 marked this transitional period before redenomination reduced unwieldy denominations later. Exchange rates against US dollars depreciated dramatically from one dollar equals 125 RUR in July 1992 to approximately six thousand RUR when redenominated in 1998 reflecting severe economic instability during those years.
On the 15th of July 2024 Central Bank closed statistics for over-the-counter markets while November 18 saw exchange rates drop below one hundred rubles per dollar breaching government benchmarks. By November 27 trading reached 114.5 rubles per dollar showing daily depreciation near two percent as volatility intensified across foreign exchange platforms.
Kyrgyzstan Moldova and Turkmenistan used the Russian ruble until 1993 while Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Georgia Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan maintained it through 1994. Tajikistan held onto the currency longest until 1995 when final separation occurred.
The 200-ruble note issued the 12th of October 2017 featured Crimean imagery provoking Ukrainian National Bank decree banning circulation within Ukraine on the 13th of October 2017 due to disputed territorial status unrecognized by most UN members.