What Is Money

WHAT IS MONEY?

Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as a payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and occasionally in the past, a standard of deferred payment. Any kind of object or secure verifiable record that fulfills these functions can serve as money.

Money is more than a piece of paper. To me, money is our means of communicating what we want and how we are going to get it. Today, there are so many different variations of it in the world people recognize it no matter where they are! Let's discuss how money came about, its value and where it is now.

According to The History of Money by Mary Bellis, "On March 10, 1862 the first United States paper money was issued. The denominations were $5, $10, and $20. They became legal tender by Act of March 17, 1862. The inclusion of "In God We Trust" on all currency was required by law in 1955. The national motto first appeared on paper money in 1957 on $1 Silver Certificates, and on all Federal Reserve Notes beginning with Series 1963". What in the world were we using prior to 1862? We bartered and had commodity money. These forms were used to trade items for others, for example, if I had 2 pigs and I needed 2 hens, I needed to find someone who I could barter with in order to get the 2 hens I needed. Or, I could find someone whom would be willing to allow me provide services for them in order to receive my 2 hens. A commodity was a form of payment that was constant across the board like rice, seeds, tobacco or cattle. But these caused problems because of the concerns with keeping them stored and carry them to and from.

"Metals objects were introduced as money around 5000 B.C. By 700 BC, the Lydians became the first in the Western world to make coins. Countries were soon minting their own series of coins with specific values. Metal was used because it was readily available, easy to work with and could be recycled. Since coins were given a certain value, it became easier to compare the cost of items people wanted. Some of the earliest known paper money dates back to China, where the issue of paper money became common from about AD 960 onwards." So look at what happens now, we no longer use bartering and commodities, we move to coins and paper money; a more useful tool and easier to manage. No longer did we have to carry around bartering tools or tobacco and cattle. We were able to actually use coins and paper money to get what we needed. Imagine how different the world became then. Our eyes were opened to something new!

"The origin of the "$" money sign is not certain. Many historians trace the $ money sign to either the Mexican or Spanish "P's" for pesos, or piastres, or