Tellers

A teller is a person who tells or relates information. The term is commonly used for two main kinds of roles: bank tellers, who handle routine financial transactions for customers, and storytellers, who convey narratives either orally or in writing. The word itself derives from the verb tell, via Old English tellian, to recount or relate.

Bank tellers work in retail banking environments at teller counters or windows. Their duties include processing deposits and withdrawals, cashing checks, issuing receipts, facilitating transfers between accounts, and answering questions about customers' accounts. They verify customer identity, balance cash drawers, balance at the end of shifts, and identify counterfeit currency. They operate under strict regulatory and security requirements related to anti-money laundering, record-keeping, and privacy. Training is typically on the job, with emphasis on accuracy, numerical proficiency, customer service, and cash-handling procedures.

Storytellers preserve and transmit culture, history, and values through narrative. In traditional contexts, roles such as griots and bards serve as living archives, recounting events and genealogies to communities. In modern usage, authors, journalists, performers, and educators are described as storytellers. Storytelling can inform, entertain, persuade, or inspire. Techniques include controlling pace and voice, employing gesture or media, and tailoring the narrative to audience and context. Storytelling spans oral performance, print, broadcasting, film, and digital media.

Origin and usage: the noun reflects the agent noun from tell, with the suffix -er indicating a person who performs the action.