'Anahid' originates from Old Iranian (Avestan), specifically the word 'Anāhitā', where the negative prefix 'a-' meant 'not' and 'nahita' (or related root) meant 'defiled' or 'impure', giving an overall sense of 'immaculate' or 'pure'.

'Anahid' changed from the Avestan/Old Persian word 'Anāhitā', passed through Middle Persian (as 'Anāhīd/Anāhit'), and entered Armenian as 'Anahit' before appearing in modern forms such as 'Anahid'.

Initially, it referred primarily to the goddess 'Anāhitā' meaning 'immaculate' or 'pure'; over time it became used as a female personal name retaining associations of purity, fertility and healing.