British mercantilists of the late 16th century who sailed to India and China began to use the word cash to describe coins of value, the word casu in the Tamil language of India, and casi in Sinhalese (Sri Lanka), apparently from kash meaning jade in western China, a major source from the Yurungkash (white jade) and Karakash (black jade) rivers of the Tarim Basin where kash was abundant.
