'astrocompass' originates from English, specifically the combining form 'astro-' and the word 'compass', where 'astro-' comes from Greek 'astron' meaning 'star' and 'compass' comes from Old French 'compas' (from Late Latin 'compassare').

'astrocompass' was formed in modern English as a compound of 'astro-' (from Greek 'astron') and 'compass' (from Old French 'compas', from Late Latin 'compassare'); the components 'astro-' and 'compass' have long histories but the compound itself is a 19th–20th century nautical/aviation coinage.

Initially the parts meant 'star' and 'device for finding direction'; over time the compound came to denote specifically an instrument that uses celestial observations to establish heading.