'Archaeopteryx' originates from Greek via Neo-Latin, specifically the Greek elements 'arkhaios' and 'pteryx', where 'arkhaios' meant 'ancient' and 'pteryx' meant 'wing' or 'feather'.

'Archaeopteryx' was coined as a scientific genus name in the 19th century (notably applied to Archaeopteryx lithographica in 1861); it was formed in Neo-Latin from Greek roots and has remained the established scientific name.

Initially it literally meant 'ancient wing' as a descriptive compound; over time the term became fixed as the formal genus name and a shorthand reference for a pivotal transitional fossil between dinosaurs and birds.