'autogamous' originates from New Latin, specifically the word 'autogamus', where 'auto-' meant 'self' and 'gamos' meant 'marriage'.

'autogamous' changed from Greek the word 'autogamos' and was Latinized as 'autogamus' in New Latin, and eventually became the modern English word 'autogamous'.

Initially, it meant 'self-married' (literally 'married to oneself'), but over time it evolved into the biological sense 'capable of self-fertilization', which is its current meaning.