git uses "master" to mean the canonical, pristine version as in the usage of the term in art and photography: master 5b: an original from which copies can

git uses "master" to mean the canonical, pristine version as in the usage of the term in art and photography: master 5b: an original from which copies can be made especially : a master recording (such as a magnetic tape) https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/master https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/master You can branch from master the way you duplicate a master tape cassette, and the copy is not any worse or subordinate. In fact the whole point is that the branches are improvements.