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Because it is the scientific name. Salt is literally made of the elements Sodium and Chlorine which is actually NaCl.

Since chlorine gains an electron when combining with sodium, the suffix changes to reflect this. That is just how it works in chemistry, where the element reacted with will get a different suffix depending on the number of electrons gained. It is somewhat similar to traditional marriage where the wife takes on the husband's last name as a reflection of that union.

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7y ago

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