'areola' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'areola', a diminutive of 'area', where 'area' meant 'open space' or 'region'.

'areola' was used in Late/Medieval Latin with the sense 'small open space' and was adopted into scientific English (New Latin) to denote small circular areas; it later came to be used in anatomy for the pigmented ring around the nipple.

Initially, it meant 'small open space' but over time it evolved into specialized senses such as the pigmented ring around the nipple and small defined patches in botany and dermatology.