A store where people can borrow money by leaving valuable items as security, or buy items that others have pawned.
From Middle English 'paune,' from Old French 'pan' (security). Combined with 'shop,' it literally means a shop dealing in pawned items or pawn-based loans.
Pawnshops have been around since medieval times and served as an early banking system before modern banks existed—they were the only place poor people could borrow money! Many modern countries still license pawnshops because they serve an important financial role.
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