'Archegoniatae' originates from New Latin, specifically the word 'Archegoniata', where the element 'archegon-' comes from Greek and referred to the 'archegonium' (the female reproductive organ).

'Archegoniatae' developed as a New Latin taxonomic plural from 'Archegoniata' (singular). The root goes back to Greek 'archegonion' (ἄρχῃ + a form related to γόνος/γόνη) and was adopted into botanical Latin in the 19th century for use in classificatory schemes; it later fell out of favor with the rise of phylogenetic/cladistic classifications.

Initially, it simply named plants that have archegonia ('plants with archegonia'); over time the term became primarily a historical or descriptive label rather than a formal, monophyletic taxonomic unit in modern systematics.