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I watched [this video](https://youtu.be/s6gr7Ljl0x8?t=3m43s) in which the
story is supposed to be a folk tale but everybody speaks an exaggerated ギャル語
slang. The video has subtitles that explain all the ギャル語 words.

The word 「[ＫＢＮ]{ケービーエヌ}」 was used frequently. In the subtitles it was
"translated" to 「[小判](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koban_\(coin\))」, an Edo
period gold coin. I understand that in the video the coins are probably
supposed to be koban, but because this video was about the ギャル語 slang, it made
me wonder if the word is still used for money in general.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-30T10:01:27.520
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question
slang colloquial-language
Is 小判{こばん} understood as a slang term for coins or money in general?
The word KBN is used for money 小判｛こばん｝ in this video. But, the word 小判｛こばん｝ is
not used for money now, even in a ギャル world.

By the way, I do not think that it will be useful for learning Japanese much
if you remember the words in this video, though.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-30T10:38:30.057
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No, "小判" isn't a word we modern Japanese (including ギャル and ギャル男) would use to
refer to coins of today, or money in general for that matter. It is precisely
the name for the flat, oblong piece of gold that was used as currency in the
Edo period.

Whoever wrote the script of the video had at least two choices in translating
"小判" into modern slang: They could first take the modern equivalent of what 小判
was, which would be お金, 硬貨, etc, and render it in the way those lexically
creative hipsters would say it in their vernacular (which would be... ゼニ, カネ
or マニー?, I don't know.)

Or they could also just stick with the word "小判", without worrying to much
about consistency (which they shouldn't), and play with it in the way ギャル/ギャル男
in those days _could have_ (i.e. the syllable-based initialism). They went
with this latter approach, and to good effect, in my opinion.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-30T12:53:51.530
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What that video is doing is taking the original lines and "converting" into
"gal" talk (personally this doesn't sound like "gal" talk but more like "party
people" talk). Note this is the uploader doing his own translation, so he is
actually making things up that sound like the speech pattern.

This type of speech pattern sometimes shortens Japanese words into just
consonants, so he takes 小判 (which has already been answered that it is not
used today) and remixes it into which he thinks it might sound like if people
from that time period spoke in "gal" talk.
CC BY-SA 3.0
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