'anthelion' originates from Ancient Greek, specifically the elements 'anti-' and 'helios', where 'anti-' meant 'opposite' and 'helios' meant 'sun'.

'anthelion' was adopted into scientific/meteorological English from Greek-derived Neo-Latin/Modern scientific terminology and entered English usage to name the specific optical phenomenon observed opposite the sun.

Initially composed of elements meaning 'opposite the sun'; over time it evolved to refer specifically to the halo-related bright spot located opposite the sun.