'skidder' originates from English, specifically the word 'skid' with the agentive suffix '-er', where 'skid' originally meant 'a plank, split piece of wood' (from Old Norse 'skíð').

'skid' comes from Old Norse 'skíð' meaning 'split piece of wood, plank'; in English 'skid' took meanings related to sliding objects and also to planks used to slide loads; the agent noun 'skidder' (literally 'one that skids' or 'one that uses skids') arose in the 19th century for machines that drag logs.

Initially, the root referred to a piece of wood or plank and to the action of sliding on such planks; over time the compound 'skidder' evolved into a specific term for a logging vehicle that drags logs (and informally for something that skids).