We all know what " $ " means nowadays but how did that weird S looking symbol come to symbolize money?
The dollar sign can be traced back to letters in the 1770s between American and Spanish American Businesses. They needed to differentiate between the Spanish Peso and the American dollar
We all know what " $ " means nowadays but how did that weird S looking symbol come to symbolize money?
The dollar sign can be traced back to letters in the 1770s between American and Spanish American Businesses. They needed to differentiate between the Spanish Peso and the American dollar. It seems they didn't think writing out "American Dollar" and "Spanish Peso" for every transaction was very efficient.
The peso was denoted as "Ps" and the American dollar was denoted as "US". The two letters in both abbreviations eventually merged together and was then simplified to get our modern day dollar sign! (The transition is pictured above)
It should be noted that there are many other (although less feasible) origin hypotheses ranging from Spanish currency to Greek Mythology.
More Historical Facts
Dee doesn't want to Work
He wants to Clean
King Henry VIII's Coffin Exploded — And Dogs Licked His Remains
When Henry VIII died in 1547, he weighed nearly 400 pounds. His waist measured 54 inches
Vikings Never Wore Horned Helmets
That iconic image of a Viking warrior with horns on his head. Completely made up