'balanidae' originates from Modern Latin, formed from the genus name 'Balanus' plus the family-forming suffix '-idae', ultimately from Greek 'balanos' meaning 'acorn'.

'balanos' (Greek) gave rise to the Latin/Neo-Latin genus name 'Balanus', and in modern biological nomenclature this became the basis for the family name 'Balanidae'.

Initially it meant 'acorn' (the fruit), but the term was applied metaphorically to acorn-shaped barnacles and later became the formal family name for those barnacles, 'Balanidae'.