Did you know?
Roman soldiers probably weren't paid in salt
“Salary” does come from Latin salarium, which shares a root with sal, “salt.” But there's no evidence soldiers were paid in salt; word historians trace the story to nineteenth-century dictionaries.
Read the full story: The Salty Words in Your Vocabulary
More salt facts
Cite this page
For school projects and reports. Teachers often prefer the original sources too: see the list below.
The Salt Almanac. (2026, November 8). Roman soldiers probably weren't paid in salt. https://saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/roman-salt-pay-myth
“Roman soldiers probably weren't paid in salt.” The Salt Almanac, 8 Nov. 2026, saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/roman-salt-pay-myth. Accessed [today's date].
“Roman soldiers probably weren't paid in salt.” The Salt Almanac. Last modified November 8, 2026. https://saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/roman-salt-pay-myth.
Original sources
- Wordorigins.org. Salary. https://www.wordorigins.org/big-list-entries/salary