Macro Musings with David Beckworth · Monday, August 3, 2026
Brendan Greeley traces the origin of the dollar's name to a silver coin from the Spanish Empire, originally a German name ('Taler') that became common in English usage before the founding of the United States. He argues that monetary sovereignty is not a given but something that must be won and continually tested, as evidenced by early American reliance on foreign coinage.
“What it chose instead, as its currency was a coin from the Spanish Empire made out of Mexican silver at the time and Bolivian silver, with a German name.”
“It came from a silver valley called Jahrstall, and that word got shortened in German to Taler, and then became Daler in Dutch and Dollar in English.”
“It was already in usage in English in the early 17th century, well before the founding of the United States.”
“And that to me suggests that sovereignty, or at least monetary sovereignty, is not something that we can assume, but something that we have to win slowly over time and is constantly being tested.”