What does schilling mean?
A schilling was a coin and monetary unit associated with Austria. English initially borrowed the term from German for an Austrian silver coin, and the name later became that of the currency Austria used before adopting the euro. In the modern pre-euro monetary system, one schilling was divided into 100 groschen. Today the word is chiefly historical: it may appear in museum catalogues, old receipts, biographies, and accounts of Austrian prices and politics. It should not be confused with the similarly named British shilling, which belonged to a separate monetary tradition. Although no longer part of ordinary everyday vocabulary, schilling is useful when reading about Austrian numismatics or the economic and political life of the country before euro adoption. Its spelling and pronunciation also make it easily recognizable as a Germanic monetary term.
nounA former coin and monetary unit of Austria. The name was also used for Austria's pre-euro currency, which was replaced by the euro in 2002.
- A historical Austrian coin or monetary unit, including the currency used in Austria before the euro.
"The antique shop displayed an Austrian coin worth one schilling."
"The old receipt records a payment of twelve schillings."
"Travelers arriving in Vienna in 1998 changed their money into Austrian schillings."
Use the plural when referring to multiple coins, units of currency, or amounts denominated in schillings.
"Several old schillings were found in the collection."
Austria kept the old German coin name for its currency: 100 groschen made one schilling until the euro arrived in 2002.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does schilling come from?
English borrowed the word from German Schilling in the early 17th century for an Austrian coin. German Schilling comes from Middle High German schilinc and Old High German scilling, with the English shilling, historical scilling, and skilling belonging to the same wider Germanic word family. The term was subsequently adopted for Austria's modern currency, which circulated alongside the legacy currencies of other euro-area countries shortly before the euro replaced it in 2002.
How schilling is actually used
Now uncommon and historical, the word appears chiefly in discussions of Austrian monetary history and in descriptions of older coins.
Easily confused with schilling
A shilling was a former coin and monetary unit in Britain, whereas a schilling belonged to Austrian monetary history.