This compound term is Latin, from [bifurcus] meaning double-pronged. The prefix [bi-] means "two" or "double", and the root [-furcat- ], derived from the Latin [furca] meaning "a fork". Bifurcation means "to fork into two".

In anatomy the term is used to denote the splitting of a structure into two, such as the "bifurcation of the aorta". A variation of the term is "bifid".