'altazimuth' originates from the combination of 'altitude' and 'azimuth', where 'altitude' refers to the height of an object above the horizon, and 'azimuth' refers to the angle between the north point and the perpendicular projection of the star down onto the horizon.

'altazimuth' was formed by combining the words 'altitude' and 'azimuth' in the 19th century to describe a specific type of telescope mount.

Initially, it referred to the combination of altitude and azimuth measurements, but over time it evolved into its current meaning of a telescope mounting system.