'barytes' originates from French, specifically the word 'baryte', where Greek 'barys' meant 'heavy'.

'barys' (Greek) passed into New Latin and French as 'baryte' and then into English as 'baryte' and the variant/plural form 'barytes', referring to the mineral.

Initially the root meant 'heavy', but over time it evolved into the mineral name meaning 'the heavy mineral barium sulfate'.