salary (English)
Where does "salary" come from?
The English word 'salary' traces its roots back to the Latin 'salārium', which served as a term for 'wages'[1][3]. This Latin term was a nominalization of the adjective 'salārius', meaning 'pertaining to salt', which was derived from the base word 'sal'[3][5]. The word evolved through Old French 'salaire'[2] and Anglo-Norman 'salarie' before appearing in Middle English as 'salarie'[1]. While it is widely assumed that 'salārium' originated as an abbreviation of 'salārium argentum' or 'salt money', there is no direct evidence from ancient sources to confirm whether this payment referred to money used to buy salt or an actual supply of salt provided as compensation[1].
Open questions
- The theory that salarium originated as an abbreviation for salt money is not attested in ancient sources. [1]
- The historical claim that Roman soldiers were paid in salt lacks evidence from contemporary ancient records. [1]
Full etymology tree
- salary (English), 'A fixed amount of money paid to a worker, usually calculated on a monthly or annual basis, not hourly, as wages. Implies a degree of professionalism and/or autonomy.'
- inherited salarie (Middle English)
- borrowed salarie (Anglo-Norman)
- inherited salaire (Old French), 'salary (fixed amount of money paid to a worker per month, per year, etc.)'
- learned borrowing salarium (Latin), 'a salary, stipend, allowance, pension'
- derived salarius (Latin), 'Of or pertaining to salt.'
- derived sal (Latin), 'salt'
- inherited *sāls (Proto-Italic), 'salt'
- inherited *séh₂ls (Proto-Indo-European), 'salt'
- inherited *sāls (Proto-Italic), 'salt'
- suffix -arius (Latin), 'Used to form adjectives from nouns or numerals.'
- derived sal (Latin), 'salt'
- suffix -arium (Latin), 'Used primarily to form nouns of purpose from other nouns, such as places where things are kept or objects used for a particular end. See usage notes.'
- derived salarius (Latin), 'Of or pertaining to salt.'
- learned borrowing salarium (Latin), 'a salary, stipend, allowance, pension'
- inherited salaire (Old French), 'salary (fixed amount of money paid to a worker per month, per year, etc.)'
- borrowed salarie (Anglo-Norman)
- inherited salarie (Middle English)
Ancestors
- salaire (Old French)
- salarium (Latin)
Descendants and derived words
- champagne taste on a beer salary (English)
- final salary (English)
- salary cap (English)
- salary packaging (English)
- salary sacrifice (English)
- salary scale (English)
- サラリー (Japanese)
Sources
- salary (English) - Wiktionary
- salaire (Old French) - Wiktionary
- salarium (Latin) - Wiktionary
- sal (Latin) - Wiktionary
- salarius (Latin) - Wiktionary
Updated August 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris