shekels

Shekel is a historical term used in the ancient Near East to denote both a unit of weight and a unit of currency. The name comes from the Hebrew word for “weight” or “to weigh.” In antiquity the shekel functioned as a standard measure in trade and as a coin, with the weight and the monetary systems varying by region and era.

As a weight, the shekel was a widely used standard in the Levant and neighboring regions. Its approximate weight is generally cited around 11 or 12 grams, though exact measures varied over time and place. The shekel also served as the basis for larger units and for monetary practices, including temple offerings and laws governing payments.

In biblical and post-biblical contexts, the term is associated with specific coins and with the temple economy. The half-shekel is famously connected with the annual temple tax in ancient Jerusalem, while other forms of the shekel circulated as money in various periods, including Hellenistic and early Roman times. Coins described as “shekels” were minted in different cities and often bore symbols that identified their origin.

In modern times, the term refers to Israel’s currency. The New Israeli Shekel (NIS), introduced in 1985, is the official currency of Israel and is subdivided into 100 agorot. The old shekel was replaced at a significant rate, with 1,000 old units equaling 1 new shekel. Today, the symbol ₪ and the code ILS denote the contemporary currency, though the word shekel is still used in scholarly and historical contexts to describe ancient weights and coins.