[Mesorah] Etymology of "sar"

[Zev Sero]

I've always assumed that "sar" is ultimately derived from "Sh-r-t", 
because in English it's usually translated as "minister", which means a 
servant.  And its usage generally conforms to that meaning.  But I 
recently started to question this because of "ki tistorer alenu gam 
historer", which seems to be derived from "sar", and uses it not to 
represent the sar's inferior relationship to the king, but his superior 
relationship to the people.  ("mi samcha le'ish sar veshofet alenu" 
doesn't bother me, because there's the explicit reference to the 
appointer whose existence is being questioned, and who would be the 
sar's superior.)

-- 
Zev Sero                May 2017, with its *nine* days of Chanukah,
zev at sero.name           be a brilliant year for us all