'Apios' originates from Ancient Greek, specifically the word 'apios', where 'apios' meant 'pear' or 'pear-like' (likely referring to the shape of some plant parts).

'Apios' was adopted into botanical Latin as the genus name (credited to botanists working in the 18th century) and has remained in that form in modern botanical usage.

Initially the Greek term described a 'pear' or something 'pear-shaped'; over time the word became a fixed scientific name for a genus of tuber-producing legumes and no longer conveys the general meaning 'pear'.