'asterospondylous' originates from Greek, specifically the elements 'aster-' from 'astēr' meaning 'star' and 'spondyl-' from 'spondylos' meaning 'vertebra', combined with the adjectival suffix '-ous' (from Latin/Greek formation) to mean 'having star-like vertebrae'.

'asterospondylous' is a modern scientific compound formed by joining the Greek roots 'aster-' and 'spondyl-' with the suffix '-ous' in anatomical and paleontological usage; it appears in technical descriptions from the late 19th to 20th century as specialists coined precise morphological terms.

Initially coined to denote 'having star-shaped vertebral elements' in specialist descriptions, the term has retained this specific morphological meaning in modern usage without broad semantic shift.