What is Money?

They call it Shillings in Uganda; they call it Rand in South Africa; they call it Yen in Japan; they call it Pounds in Britain; and we call it Dollars in North America. What is it?

At a glance the answer to this question seems obvious. It’s money!

You would agree on coins and banknotes as money, but would you accept them from any country? I am sure you would be less willing to accept shillings than dollars. What about cheques, credit cards, bank drafts, money orders and gold? All these objects are accepted as money at one time or another. What is the origin, the function and the value…