Meaning · Origin · Etymology
Cash
காசு · kāsu
Tamil
“A Tamil word for "coin" became the universal word for money.”
Kāsu in Tamil means "coin" or "money." The word is ancient, appearing in Tamil inscriptions from the early centuries CE.
Tamil traders spread the word across the Indian Ocean. In Malayalam it became kāś, in Kannada kāsu, in Telugu kāsu.
Portuguese traders in South India heard "kāsu" and adopted it as "caixa" (money box). Dutch made it "kass," French "caisse," and English "cash."
The Tamil word for coin became the universal word for ready money—cash.
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Cash is now one of the most common words in English. Few speakers know it comes from Tamil. Every time we say "cash," we're speaking a word that traveled from ancient Tamil trade routes.
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