'seleniferous' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'selēnē,' meaning 'moon,' and the suffix '-ferous,' meaning 'bearing' or 'producing.'

'selēnē' combined with the Latin suffix '-ferous' to form the modern English word 'seleniferous.'

Initially, it referred to anything related to the moon, but over time it evolved to mean containing selenium due to the element's name derived from the moon.