The English word "cheque" comes from the Arabs. As early as the ninth century, a Muslim merchant could cash a cheque in China drawn on his bank in Baghdad. Only in the 14th century did merchants in medieval Europe begin using cheques. --- **Source:** Gleeson-White, Jane. Double Entry: How the Merchants of Venice Created Modern Finance. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2012. http://www.myilibrary.com?id=336325.