'aoudad' originates from Maghrebi Arabic, specifically the word 'oudād' (also reported as 'waddād'), where 'oudād' was a local name for the species (the Barbary sheep).

'aoudad' was adopted into European languages (notably French and Spanish) as 'aoudad'/'oudad' and was later borrowed into English in the 19th century as 'aoudad'.

Initially it referred to the local North African name for this sheep species; over time the word entered scientific and common English usage with essentially the same meaning of 'Barbary sheep' or 'North African wild sheep'.