The word 'Alisma' originates from Neo-Latin, which adopted it from the French word 'alisma', itself derived from a Celtic word meaning 'water plant'.

'Alisma' was used in scientific Latin to name the genus, based on the earlier French and Celtic terms, and became the modern English botanical term 'Alisma'.

Initially, it referred specifically to water plants in general, but over time it became the scientific name for a particular genus of aquatic plants.