'arteria' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'arteria', which in turn comes from Greek 'ἀρτηρία' (artería).

'arteria' changed from Greek 'ἀρτηρία' into Latin 'arteria' and was adopted into medical and anatomical usage in English (often retained in Latinized anatomical names).

Initially, the Greek term referred to a 'windpipe' (because arteries were once believed to carry air); over time it evolved to mean the modern sense of 'artery' (a blood vessel).