'ferroan' originates from Modern Latin, specifically from the combining form 'ferro-' ultimately from Latin 'ferrum', where 'ferrum' meant 'iron', combined with the adjectival suffix '-an' meaning 'pertaining to'.

'ferro-' comes from Latin 'ferrum' ('iron'); scientific compounds using 'ferro-' (e.g. 'ferrous') appeared in post-medieval scientific Latin and English, and 'ferroan' developed as a technical adjective in geology and mineralogy in the 19th–20th centuries to mean 'iron-bearing'.

Initially it meant 'pertaining to iron' in a general etymological sense, but over time it has become specialized to mean 'containing or rich in iron', especially in geological and mineralogical contexts.