louis
n. countablen. a gold coin used in France a long time ago. It usually had a picture of a French king on it.
n. a French gold coin first struck in 1640, typically bearing the image of a King Louis. Used as a unit of currency until the adoption of the franc.
The museum displays a rare gold Louis from the seventeenth century.
While digging in the garden, the homeowner discovered a small jar containing several gold Louis coins.
The transition from the Louis to the decimal-based franc marked a significant shift in the French monetary system following the revolution.
From French Louis, from Middle French Loïs, Loïc, &c., from Old French Looïs, Luis, Lodhuvigs, Lodevis, Lodhwig, &c., from Latin Ludovicus, from Clodovicus, from Frankish Hlūdawīg, from Proto-Germanic hlūdaz (“loud; famous”) + *wīgą (“battle”). Doublet of Lewis (which is inherited since the Middle Ages) and, more remotely, Aloysius, Luis, Ludwig, Luigi, and Clovis.
Often referred to as a 'Louis d'or' in historical or numismatic contexts.