Dogecoin has had a rather tumultuous history. The Shiba Inu-inspired token started as a joke between engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer. The coin combines Bitcoin and"Doge," the popular meme featuring an image of a Shiba Inu dog.Markus and Palmer had never met when they released the digital currency, which immediately took off, with over a million unique visitors to the Dogecoin website in its first month.
The currency, derived from open-source software project Litecoin, became popular for"tipping" on the internet, rewarding users for"good deeds." It then started attracting attention from mainstream media publications such as The Guardian. Dogecoin then became the second-most-tipped currency and generated a market value of $8 million at the time.
In spite of its initial success, Dogecoin's relevance waned. This all changed in 2021 when the cryptocurrency experienced a resurgence in popularity because of excessive attention from major celebrities such as Elon Musk and Snoop Dogg. So far, it has survived numerous bubbles. However, it remains to be seen whether it will reach its new all-time high.