'babiche' originates from Canadian French 'babiche', ultimately from an Algonquian language (possibly Mi'kmaq or Abenaki) where a related word (recorded as 'papiš' or similar) meant 'cord' or 'thong'.

'babiche' was borrowed into Canadian French from an Algonquian language and later adopted into English in the 18th–19th century as 'babiche' (plural 'babiches').

Initially it meant 'a cord or thong (of rawhide or sinew)', and over time this basic meaning has remained essentially unchanged in English.