'aortography' originates from Greek and New Latin elements: the Greek word 'aortē' (αορτή) meaning 'aorta' or 'great artery', combined with the Greek-derived suffix '-graphy' from 'graphia' meaning 'writing' or 'recording'.

'aortography' was formed in medical/Scientific usage in the late 19th to early 20th century by combining 'aorta' (from Greek 'aortē', via Latin/Modern medical usage) with the combining form '-graphy' (from Greek 'graphia' through Latin). The term entered Modern English as a medical coinage describing the imaging procedure.

Initially the elements literally meant 'writing/recording of the aorta'; over time the compound has come to mean specifically 'radiographic imaging of the aorta (usually with contrast)', rather than any literal writing.