The idea of minting refers to making a coin.
Cuñar is a verb that can come from cuño or wedge . The action usually refers to making a coin, a medallion , a medal or another metal piece . For example: “The government is analyzing minting a special coin to commemorate the anniversary of independence.”
This meaning of the notion is associated with the printing or sealing of a piece through the use of a die or a stamp . Over time , by extension, the printing of banknotes also began to be known as coining.
History of the process of minting coins
It is curious to know, for example, that it is established that Alexander the Great was the first person to bet that the coins that were minted at that time would have a portrait; specifically, first of gods and then his own. Something that is very normal nowadays, finding those that have the faces of the kings of the countries.
It is determined that the Industrial Revolution was a very relevant event in this sense, since it was what allowed a relevant step to be taken when minting coins. And machinery and systems were developed that significantly facilitated and perfected the operation.
Starting from the term at hand and this meaning that we are addressing, we can emphasize that when the most modern version of any coin or bill is put into circulation, they are called new mint .
The case of Spain
In Spain we can indicate that the minting of money, in any of its two formats, is carried out through the National Mint and Stamp Factory . Furthermore, in the case of its Royal Mint, it must be emphasized that it began its activity in the 1990s with the minting of silver coins with a value of 2,000 pesetas.
Since then, it has been dedicated to minting coins annually that have the particularity of commemorating important events, characters or situations such as the V Centenary of Christopher Columbus , International Women's Day , the 400th Anniversary of El Greco or the IV Centenary of the death of Cervantes .
Coining a term means proposing it and then making it popular.
Other uses of the term coin
The development of phrases or expressions that manage to become popular or that achieve mass diffusion is also known as coining: “The German philosopher was responsible for coining this term,” “I do not propose to coin any concept, I am only interested in making my theory” , “The repeated acts committed by criminals on motorcycles led to the coining of the expression 'motochorro' in Argentina” .
The dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ) also mentions that coining refers to introducing wedges . A wedge, in this sense, is an object that ends in a point and that is used to press or adjust different objects, ensuring that they are located in a space or making them fit.
When wedging, in this way, different things are adjusted to each other, allowing them to fit together : “Please don't put anything on the table: I have to wedge the leg that came off,” “I'm going to wedge the car so that it can't move.” , “Faced with the emergency, the man tried to wedge the different parts of the structure to prevent the collapse.”