Sense file
How the sense moved
The archive follows the dated record first, then reads the social or rhetorical pressure that hardened, softened, narrowed, or reversed the word.
Older meaning
Associated in later retellings with salt payment or allowance.
Modern meaning
Fixed compensation for work.
Research lens
A strong example of how a vivid etymology can survive because it teaches well, not because it settles every historical detail.
Meaning trail
Root
salarium
A Roman allowance term, often linked to salt in popular retellings.
Bridge
official payment
Administrative use stabilized the compensation sense.
Now
fixed pay
Modern employment stripped away the older story.