Penny

Penny is an English pet form of Penelope. Penelope, in turn, is a Greek name (Πηνελοπη), most likely derived from “pēnē” meaning “weft” (a piece of woven cloth) combined with “lepō” meaning “peel” – in other words, unweave a piece of woven cloth. This etymology makes perfect sense if you’re familiar with Penelope’s story in Greek Mythology (see Penelope’s name page for more detail). The character of Penelope in Greek Mythology is also synonymous with being a patient and faithful wife. The name Penelope first appeared in England in the 16th century, and the diminutive “Penny” followed soon after. Aside from Penny’s connection to Penelope, it’s also a vocabulary word for a unit of English currency (often referred to as “pence”). From this financial perspective, the word “penny” actually dates back to 8th century Olde English and was variably called a “pening, penig, penning” derived from the Old High German “pfenning” (of unknown meaning). The coin was abbreviated as “d.” in reference to the Latin “denarius” which was a Roman coin first minted in the 3rd century B.C. (derived from “dēnī” meaning “containing 10” indicating its original value being equivalent to 10 assess). In medieval England, the penny’s value was 1/12th of a shilling and it took twenty shillings to make a pound (240 pence). The penny was further divided into a “halfpence” and again into a “farthing” (1/4th of a penny). So the penny wasn’t always the smallest unit of currency. And in the Middle Ages, a penny went a lot further than it does today! As an independently given female name, Penny was quite popular in the middle of the 20th century; however, today the name has fallen from fashion (although it’s still used in England with mild frequency).