5/15/2020 Currencies Whose Names Still Point to Silver Money | Silver Bullion

×
We are here for you!

Our retail office is closed until Singapore's Circuit Breaker period is over.

Silver Bullion will continue to operate all other services and is reachable by

phone or e-mail 18 hours a day. See details

CURRENCIES WHOSE NAMES STILL POINT TO SILVER MONEY

Tweet
Posted by Vincent Tie on 28 Apr 2016
Share 13

‘The major monetary metal in history is silver, not gold.’

– Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman

Unbeknownst to many, silver has been used more times as money in history than gold. It was

only towards the end of the 19th century that silver was systematically de-monetised from

the monetary system by the United States and Great Britain.

In this article, we show you how the names of major existing currencies today were derived

from their silver roots. Their link to their silver past reminds us all that silver is money and

money should be a store of value cherished for its scarcity.

THE DOLLAR

The word 'dollar' was derived from an ancient European silver coin known as the Thaler.
Request Callback

https://www.silverbullion.com.sg/Articles/Detail/Currencies-Whose-Names-Still-Point-to-Silver/1958 1/6
5/15/2020 Currencies Whose Names Still Point to Silver Money | Silver Bullion

The Thaler silver coin was used throughout Europe for almost four hundred years from as

early as the 15th century.

The word 'thaler' is an abbreviation of its longer name - Joachimsthaler, used for coins minted

from silver mined in the city of Joachinsthal in Bohemia.

The word 'thal' means "valley" in German. So thaler literally means something that comes

from the valley.

Over the years, the word thaler reached other countries and it evolved into variants such as

the Taler (Scandinavia), Tolar (Slovenia), Daalder (Dutch) and the Dollar (English).

1525 Joachimsthaler of the Czech Kingdom

THE PESO

The peso was a name given in Spain to a silver coin know as the 'piece of eight' (peso de ocho)

or more famously known as the Spanish dollar.

It had a diameter of 38mm, weighed 27.468g and had a fineness of 93%.

https://www.silverbullion.com.sg/Articles/Detail/Currencies-Whose-Names-Still-Point-to-Silver/1958 2/6
5/15/2020 Currencies Whose Names Still Point to Silver Money | Silver Bullion

It was called 'piece of eight' because the face value of the silver coin was 8 reales - the

currency unit in Spain for many centuries.

The Spanish dollar was minted from the middle of the 16th century and was widely adopted

as the first world currency by the late 18th century. It was used for trade in Europe, the

Americas and the Far East.

It's popularity also saw the silver coin become legal tender in the United States until the

middle of the 19th century. Many of the currencies we have today (e.g. U.S dollar, Japanese

Yen, Chinese Yuan, Philippine Peso) were initially based on the Spanish dollar.

A silver 8 real coin of King Charles IV of Spain

THE YUAN

The Chinese yuan was originally introduced as a silver coin in 1889. First produced by the

Guangdong mint, the Yuan silver coin had equal value to the widely circulated Mexican peso

silver coin.

https://www.silverbullion.com.sg/Articles/Detail/Currencies-Whose-Names-Still-Point-to-Silver/1958 3/6
5/15/2020 Currencies Whose Names Still Point to Silver Money | Silver Bullion

These silver coins were used in everyday trade from the early 16th century. It was common for

payment from silk to porcelain to be made with silver coins.

In Mandarin, 'yuan' literally means a "round object" or "round coin". The names of the Japanese

and Korean currencies, the yen and the won respectively, are derived from the same Chinese

yuan character.

1920 silver yuan portraying Yuan Shikai

THE POUND STERLING

The official name of the United Kingdom currency, pound sterling, is derived from a small

Norman silver coin minted in the 11th century.

During this period, these silver pennies were produced with a consistent weight of silver

leading to the equating of 240 pennies to a pound of silver.

https://www.silverbullion.com.sg/Articles/Detail/Currencies-Whose-Names-Still-Point-to-Silver/1958 4/6
5/15/2020 Currencies Whose Names Still Point to Silver Money | Silver Bullion

The Norman silver penny was observed to have held a consistent uniform weight of 22.5

grains of silver for more than two centuries. This gave the penny a reputation of being a

strong and fixed currency which could be used reliably for trade even abroad.

This is possibly how the word 'sterling' (derived from the Middle English word 'ster' meaning

'strong', 'rigid' or 'fixed') was used to describe the currency over time.

An Anglo-Saxon "Long Cross" silver penny

THE RUPEE

Several countries such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Mauritius use the rupee as the

name of their currencies.

The origin of the word 'rupee' comes from the Sanskrit word 'rūpya' which means "wrought

silver, a coin of silver".

The rupiah, used by Indonesia, is also a derivative of the word 'rūpya'.

https://www.silverbullion.com.sg/Articles/Detail/Currencies-Whose-Names-Still-Point-to-Silver/1958 5/6
5/15/2020 Currencies Whose Names Still Point to Silver Money | Silver Bullion

During his brief rule of northern India between 1540 and 1545, Emperor Sher Shah Suri

issued a silver rūpya coin which weighed 178 grains. This silver coin remained in use during

the Mughal Empire period and later during the British rule.

Rupiya issued by Sher Shah Suri

Tweet
Share 13

© 2009-2020, Silver Bullion Pte Ltd. All rights reserved.

S.T.A.R. Bullion Storage and Silver Bullion logos and names are registered trademarks in Singapore under T1201170H and T0911441J.

https://www.silverbullion.com.sg/Articles/Detail/Currencies-Whose-Names-Still-Point-to-Silver/1958 6/6