'aoudad' originates from Arabic, specifically the word 'awdād' (or variants such as 'oudad'), where the term referred to the wild sheep of North Africa.

'aoudad' passed into European languages (appearing in French and Spanish forms such as 'oudad' or 'aoudad') and was adopted into English in the 18th–19th century to name the species now called Ammotragus lervia.

Initially it referred specifically to the North African wild sheep; over time the term has retained that core zoological meaning (sometimes extended to introduced populations outside North Africa).