Wallet

A wallet, or billfold, is a small, flat case that is used to carry such personal items as cash, credit cards, identification documents (driver's license, identification card, club card, etc.), photographs, gift cards, business cards and other paper or laminated cards. Wallets are generally made of leather or fabrics, and they are usually pocket-sized but not always foldable.

Etymology

The word “wallet” has been in use since the late 14th century to refer to a bag or a knapsack for carrying articles. The word may derive from Proto-Germanic. The ancient Greek word kibisis, said to describe the sack carried by the god Hermes and the sack in which the mythical hero Perseus carried the severed head of the monster Medusa, has been typically translated as "wallet". Usage of the term "wallet" in its modern meaning of "flat case for carrying paper currency" in American English dates to 1834 but this meaning was one of many in the 19th century and early 20th century.

History

Ancient Greece

The classicist A. Y. Campbell set out to answer the question, "What...in ancient literature, are the uses of a wallet?" He deduced, as a Theocritean scholar, that "the wallet was the poor man's portable larder; or, poverty apart, it was a thing that you stocked with provisions." He found that sometimes a man may be eating out of it directly but the most characteristic references allude to its being "replenished as a store", not in the manner of a lunch basket but more as a survival pack.

Wallet (application)

Apple Wallet (referred to as simply Wallet) is an application in Apple's iOS (previously known as Passbook in iOS 6 to iOS 8) that allows users to store coupons, boarding passes, event tickets, store cards and, starting with iOS 8.1, credit cards, loyalty cards, and debit cards via Apple Pay. The technology is designed by Apple Inc. and was presented at the 2012 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 11, 2012 under the name Passbook (now Wallet, as of iOS 9). The application was released as a built-in app for iPhones and iPod Touch devices alongside iOS 6 on September 19, 2012.

Features

The Wallet application displays Aztec, PDF417 and QR 2D barcodes and Code 128 1D barcodes beginning with iOS 9. Each digital coupon or ticket is known as a "pass". When the user launches Wallet for the first time, a brief introduction screen will appear with a button inviting users to browse applications on the App Store with Wallet integration. Passes can also be distributed online via Safari, sent to the user via email, or scanned using the built-in scanner in the Wallet app.

Wallet (disambiguation)

A wallet is a pouch for carrying money

Wallet or The Wallet may refer to:

Electronic commerce

Books

Film and TV

Music

Songs

See also