'bareness' originates from English, formed from the adjective 'bare' plus the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'bare' itself comes from Old English 'bær', meaning 'naked'.

'bareness' developed as 'bare' (Old English 'bær') became Middle English 'bare', and the noun was formed by adding '-ness' in Middle English to create forms such as 'barenes' before reaching the modern spelling 'bareness'.

Initially, related words primarily meant 'naked' or 'unclothed'; over time the derived noun came to cover a broader sense of 'lack of covering, ornamentation, vegetation, or resources' and general emptiness or sparseness.