Where did piggy banks get their name from?

Of the symbols that have gained global recognition, few are quite as ubiquitous as the humble piggy bank.

Beloved by avid savers, the ceramic money storers have acquired a cult like status thanks to their enduring appeal.

Surprisingly, it’s not the animal’s famously impressive intellect or adorable good looks that cemented the pig as the go-to choice when crafting a money receptacle – although they are considered symbols of prosperity and wealth in several cultures around the world.

Pigs are seen as lucky charms in countries including Germany, Sweden and China among others, and pigs (or similar creatures) are represented as Gods in Norse mythology and within Hinduism.

However, when it comes to the precise provenance of the piggy bank, and why saving jars are shaped like the animals, there is some debate, and enthusiasts have proposed several origin theories. 

A WAY TO WARN OFF THIEVES 

The term piggy bank is thought to have become common in the early 20th century, in the USA.

However, the use of money banks is believed to date back much further. All the way back, in fact, to ancient times.

Here, savers used cheap pots fashioned with coin slots at the top, making it impossible to take out money without smashing the whole pot, thereby deterring both would-be thieves and spendthrifts.

Meanwhile, examples of piggy banks from the ancient East also exist, crafted from terracotta often in the shape of wild boar, which like pigs, which are regarded as a symbol of prosperity by some.

A TRIBUTE TO A TYPE OF CLAY  

When it comes to the story of how piggy banks emerged in Western culture, one popular etymological theory suggests a linguistic coincidence could be the answer.

According to a popular theory published in the 1989 book The Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things, by Charles Panati, it all boils down to clay.

He wrote that the during the Middle Ages in Western Europe, because of the scarcity of metal, a type of clay was used to make pots.

These pots, which had multiple uses in the home and kitchen including storing money, were crafted from an orange clay known as ‘pygg’, the book says. 

It goes on to add that these receptacles were originally known as ‘pygg jars’.

The name evolved to ‘pygg bank’, then ‘pig bank’, and eventually, by the 18th century, ‘piggy bank’.

This story has been widely reported, with marketing site Financial Brand writing: ‘Before the creation of modern-style banking institutions, people commonly stored their money at home — not under the mattress (or hay rack), but in common kitchen jars. 

‘During the Middle Ages, metal was expensive and seldom used for household wares. 

‘Instead, dishes and pots were made of an economical orange-coloured clay called pygg. 

‘Whenever folks could save an extra coin or two, they dropped it into one of their clay jars — a pygg pot.’ 

However, despite how appealing this theory may be, some have claimed it is simply untrue – notably etymologist Michael Quinion who wrote about it on his World Wide Words site.

He said: ‘ The story is false in every particular. 

‘There is no record of a clay called pygg, whether orange or any other colour.

‘The term pygg bank is not on record and piggy bank is only a century old.’

According to Michael, the word pig (or pygg as a regional alternative) was used from about 1450 ‘as a general term for earthenware products, including pots, pitchers, jars and crockery’.

He added that experts are no sure where ‘this sense of pig came from’, and suggests it may have evolved as a result of the shape of some items.

For example, like ceramic hot-water bottles, which were ‘smoothly rounded like a pig’s body and have indeed been called pigs’. 

Scots called coin banks ‘pirly pigs’, with pirly thought to refer to the action of putting a coin into the receptacle, as the old Scots word ‘pyrl’ is defined as to poke or thrust.

A SYMBOL OF PROSPERITY

Meanwhile, in continental Europe, notably Germany, there is evidence of money boxes in the shape of pigs that predate the 19th century.

Perhaps here, the pig shape was used symbolically, in reference to the old idea that the animal represents fertility and frugality.

The growing popularity of piggy banks in the States in the early 20th century can then be tied to the large migration of Germans during the 19th century.

However, despite the myriad ideas, no one theory has been universally acknowledged to explain the link between pigs and coin boxes, giving rise to the term ‘piggy bank’.

Despite this, their popularity endures, and they continue to be used by savvy savers in countries around the globe.