'anatifae' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'anatifa', where 'anatis' meant 'of a duck' and '-fa' is a suffix.

'anatifae' changed from the Latin word 'anatifa' and was used in scientific Latin to refer to the goose barnacle, eventually becoming obsolete in modern taxonomy.

Initially, it meant 'goose barnacle', and this meaning has remained the same, though the term is now obsolete.