'o-aminobenzoate' originates from modern chemical (New Latin/IUPAC) formation, specifically from the components 'o-' (abbreviation of 'ortho-', ultimately from Greek 'orthos'), 'amino' (from 'amine') and 'benzoate' (from New Latin 'benzoëa' / 'benzoic'), where 'orthos' meant 'straight/correct', 'amine' denotes a nitrogen-containing group, and 'benzoëa' referred to benzoin/benzoic-related substances.

'o-aminobenzoate' developed as a systematic replacement for older common names such as 'anthranilate' (from 'anthranilic acid'); nineteenth- and twentieth-century chemical nomenclature moved from common/trivial names toward composed systematic names like 'o-aminobenzoate'.

Initially the substance was commonly called 'anthranilate' (the trivial name for salts/esters of anthranilic/2-aminobenzoic acid); over time the systematic form 'o-aminobenzoate' became used in formal chemical nomenclature to indicate the ortho isomer's anion or its salts/esters.