'affenspalte' originates from German, specifically the words 'Affe' meaning 'monkey' and 'Spalte' meaning 'gap' or 'cleft'.

'Affe' and 'Spalte' combined in German to humorously describe the gap between the buttocks, eventually being used in informal contexts.

Initially, it humorously referred to the gap between the buttocks, and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.