'backstitch' originates from English, a compound of the words 'back' and 'stitch', where 'back' meant 'rear' (Old English 'bæc') and 'stitch' traces to Old English words meaning 'to pierce' or 'to prick'.

'stitch' developed from Old English roots such as 'stician'/'sticcian' (to pierce or stab), through Middle English forms like 'stiche', while 'back' comes from Old English 'bæc'; the compound 'backstitch' arose in modern English sewing terminology to denote the specific stitch that goes backward over previous stitches.

Initially the component words referred simply to 'rear' and 'a piercing/pricking action'; over time the compound came to mean the specific sewing technique 'a stitch made backward to secure or outline a seam'.