'autoallogamy' originates from Ancient Greek, specifically the roots 'autos' (meaning 'self'), 'allos' (meaning 'other'), and 'gamos' (meaning 'marriage' or 'union'), combined in modern botanical terminology to indicate a relation to both self- and cross-fertilization.

'autoallogamy' was formed in modern scientific English by combining the established botanical terms 'autogamy' and 'allogamy' (each from Greek roots) to describe mixed mating systems; it does not descend from a single classical word but is a compound coinage used in 19th–20th century botanical literature.

Initially coined to indicate a combination of the concepts 'autogamy' and 'allogamy', its usage has come to denote specifically a mixed mating/pollination system in which selfing and outcrossing both occur.