'banate' originates from the noun 'ban' (a title used in South Slavic and Hungarian lands) plus the English suffix '-ate', where 'ban' meant 'a provincial governor or lord' and '-ate' formed nouns denoting jurisdiction or office.

'banate' was formed in English to name territories governed by a 'ban'; the element 'ban' comes from South Slavic (and was used in medieval Latin), and English usage produced terms such as 'Banate of Bosnia' to denote such regions.

Initially it meant 'the office or domain of a ban', and over time it has retained that historical meaning, now used chiefly in historical or regional contexts to denote territories ruled by a ban.