ABC Russian: What does the word “salary” mean?

Do you know what does the word “salary” mean?  I’m sure you know that 🙂

This  word is written similar in many other languages:

In French –salaire

In Italian – salario

In Spanish – salario

in Dutch – Salaris

The word “Salary” comes from the Roman practice of using salt as money. So, it comes from the word “sal” (salt) 
In ancient Rome, the production and transport of salt was serious business. Everybody needed salt, and sometimes the prices would be raised in order to pay for wars.

The  Russian word for “salary” is зарплата ( there is no connection with salt)

This is the complex word and consists of 2 words: заработная+ плата

Actually, It’s impossible to translate correctly the word “заработный”.(I haven’t found the proper translation in dictionaries)

At the same time we have the verb “зарабАтывать”  – and this verb means “to earn money” 
As a consequence, the adjective “заработный” derives from this verb. You can guess, that “заработный” means – smth. that you have earned.

Плата – means “payment”

So, the Russian word “зарплАта” is зар+плата   (заработная плата- payment that you’ve earned)

How is “зарплата” in your language?