A tarì (from Arabic طري ṭarī, lit. "fresh" or "newly minted money")^[1] was the Christian designation of a type of gold coin of Islamic origin minted in Sicily, Malta and Southern Italy from about 913 to the 13th century.^[2]

In the Islamic world, this type of coin was designated under the name ruba'i, or quarter-dinar, as it weighed 1.05 g (0.034 ozt) of gold.^[1] The ruba'i had been minted by the Muslims in Sicily, unlike the Muslim rulers of North Africa, who preferred the larger dinar.^[3] It became highly popular as it was smaller and therefore more convenient than the large-sized 4.25 g (0.137 ozt) dinar.^[4]

The tarì were so widespread that imitations were made in Southern Italy (Amalfi and Salerno) from the mid-tenth century, which only used illegible "pseudo-Kufic" imitations of Arabic.^[1][4][3] When the Normans invaded Sicily in the 11th century, they issued tarì coins bearing legends in Arabic and Latin.^[5] Roger II of Sicily issued such coins, becoming the only Western ruler at that time to mint gold coins. Their composition was 161⁄3 carat gold (0.681 fineness) with some adjunction of silver and copper.^[3] The tarì were also produced by the Hohenstaufens and the early Angevins.^[6]

The tarì coins were generally minted from African gold obtained from Misrata or Tunis in Northern Africa in exchange for grain.^[6]

Nowadays, the tari is a subunit (1/12) of the scudo, souvenir coins issued by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.

• History of coins in Italy
• Islamic contributions to Medieval Europe
• Norman-Arab-Byzantine culture