'archduke' originates from the prefix 'archi-' (from Greek arkhi-, meaning 'chief' or 'principal') combined with 'duke' (from Latin 'dux', meaning 'leader').

'archduke' was influenced by Late Latin 'archidux' and German 'Erzherzog' (literally 'arch-herzog' / 'arch-duke'); through Medieval and Early Modern usage it entered English as the modern form 'archduke'.

Initially it conveyed the sense 'chief or principal duke'; over time it became a specific hereditary title (notably within the Habsburg dynasty) with that conventional meaning.