salary (English)
Where does "salary" come from?
The English verb 'salary', meaning to pay based on a set period, traces its lineage back to the Latin 'salarium', which denoted wages[1][3]. This Latin noun originated as a nominalized adjective 'salarius', formed by combining the Latin word for salt, 'sal', with the suffix 'arius'[5]. While 'salarium' is widely understood to mean wages, the specific connection to salt remains debated[1]. It is frequently suggested that the term functioned as a shorthand for 'salt money', implying either that payments were made in salt or that the money was intended for the purchase of salt, though these theories lack direct evidence from ancient sources[1]. The term eventually passed through Old French as 'salaire'[2] and Anglo-Norman as 'salarie' before appearing in Middle English as 'salarie'[1].
Open questions
- The interpretation of 'salarium' as an abbreviation for 'salt money' is not supported by any attested ancient sources. [1]
- The common claim that Roman soldiers were paid in salt is not backed by historical evidence. [1]
- The development of the Latin noun 'sal' from Proto-Italic involves an archaic ablaut pattern that remains a subject of interpretation. [4]
Full etymology tree
- salary (English), 'To pay on the basis of a period of a week or longer, especially to convert from another form of compensation.'
- inherited salarie (Middle English)
- inherited 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 -arius (Latin), 'Used to form adjectives from nouns or numerals.'
- 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.)'
- inherited salarie (Anglo-Norman)
- inherited salarie (Middle English)
Ancestors
- salaire (Old French)
- salarium (Latin)
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