Although Charlemagne had intended to issue a single currency to unite his vast multi-ethnic empire, the first steps towards pan-European economic unity were taken through the various European Communities established in the 1950s; the most significant of these included the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community.

The establishment of the European Union (EU) by the Treaty signed in the Belgian town of Maastricht in 1992 paved the way for a monetary union, but did not resolve the vexed question of what it was to be called. Many names were suggested and rejected. Whilst planners had long referred to the ECU (European Currency Unit), the German Chancellor Helmut Kohl felt that it sounded too much like the German word Kuh (cow) for Germans to take seriously. Objections to other possible names – Crown, Thaler, Franc, Guilder and Forint – meant that the last name under consideration was the Euro. It is not clear who came up with the name, but it was proposed by the German Finance Minister at the time, Theodor Waigel.

On 1 January 2002, twelve countries adopted the Euro as their currency; the monetary union now comprises twenty states. The twelve stars on the euro coins symbolize the group of founder nations. Whilst the obverse of the Euro coinage displays a map of the countries in the EU, the reverse features the national symbol of the issuing country. German two, three and five cent coins sport oak leaves; its ten, twenty and fifty cent pieces show the Brandenburg Gate. German one and two Euro coins bear the Federal Eagle.