This currency doesn't show up on my forex trading screen...

April 14, 2012 9:13 AM

What does the phrase "pukka currency" mean?

So, I read the above phrase in an online discussion on LinkedIn.

I don't know if you have to be a member of this LinkedIn group to be able to see the discussion, so let me quote the salient piece:

"That's interesting. I've read similar pieces on how LinkedIn is changing recruitment in the US. From my experience here in the UK, resumés (we call them CVs) are still pukka currency. I'd be interested to see input from UK recruiters. "

The context here is resumes and whether they have become passe.

posted by dfriedman to human relations (6 answers total)

A slang-term used in British English to describe something as "first class" or "absolutely genuine".
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 9:16 AM on April 14, 2012 [2 favorites]

Pukka is a piece of British slang of Indian origins. It basically means proper or of the highest standard. So pukka currency would mean that it still has currency -- i.e. from the dictionary: "The fact or quality of being generally accepted or in use."
posted by peacheater at 9:17 AM on April 14, 2012

Pukka generally means 'genuine' or 'of good quality', so the intended meaning is similar to the idiomatic 'coin of the realm' -- the primary/dominant means of exchange in the field.
posted by holgate at 9:20 AM on April 14, 2012

Incidentally the Hindi word pakka that pukka is derived from literally means "cooked" or "ripe."
posted by peacheater at 9:20 AM on April 14, 2012

To rephrase, based on the definitions provided above and the context as well, the individual was saying that a resume (or CV) is still very important, valuable, and necessary although UK recruiters might have a different opinion.
posted by livinglearning at 9:22 AM on April 14, 2012

Appreciate all the answers.

Thanks!
posted by dfriedman at 9:29 AM on April 14, 2012