'salvaguardia' originates from Italian and Spanish, ultimately from Latin 'salvus' meaning 'safe' combined with a form related to Old French 'garde'/'guardia' (from Germanic *warda) meaning 'guard'.

'salvaguardia' developed in Romance languages by joining elements meaning 'safe' ('salv-') and 'guard/ward' ('-guardia'); medieval forms such as Italian/Spanish 'salvagwardia' or 'salvaguardia' led to the modern form 'salvaguardia'.

Initially it conveyed the idea of 'keeping safe' or 'safe guarding'; over time it has come to mean more generally a 'safeguard' or specific 'protective measure' in policy and legal contexts.