A surname, most famously associated with Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve.
German-Jewish surname combining 'green' (color) and 'span' (chip or shaving), possibly referring to someone who worked with green wood chips or lived near a green meadow. Many German surnames were formed by combining descriptive elements.
Alan Greenspan served as Federal Reserve Chairman for 18 years and was so influential that his briefcase became a Wall Street barometer - analysts would study how thick it looked to predict interest rate changes! His mumbled, cryptic speaking style spawned the term 'Greenspeak' for deliberately obscure economic language.
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