The word peso (meaning weight in Spanish) was the name of a coin that originated in Spain and became of immense importance internationally. Peso is now the name of the monetary unit of several former Spanish colonies. This article gives a brief summary of the origin and evolution of the peso coin, which was the basic silver coin of Spanish America from the 15th through the 19th centuries (see: Currency of Spanish America). This coin was originally known in English as a piece of eight, then as a Spanish dollar, and then as a Mexican dollar. This peso coin was called piastre in French and pataca or patacão in Portuguese. In Spanish, this peso was also known at various times and in various places as a patacón, a duro, or a fuerte.

References

Chalmers, Robert (1893), History of currency in the British colonies, London: Eyre and Spottiswoode for Her Majesty's Stationery Office, pp. 5-24, 101-105, 390-396 .

Frey, Albert R. (1916), "A dictionary of numismatic names: their official and popular designations", American Journal of Numismatics I: 176, 180 .

Sédillot, René (1955), Toutes les monnaies du monde, Paris: Recueil Sirey, pp. 149, 171-172, 383-385, 406-407 .

Shaw, W.A. (1896, reprinted 1967), The history of currency 1251 to 1894: being an account of the gold and silver moneys and monetary standards of Europe and America, together with an examination of the effects of currency and exchange phenomena on commercial and national progress and well-being, New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, reprinted by Augustus M. Kelley, pp. 328-333, LC 67·20086 .

Countries where the Peso is used.