The pied avocet was one of the many bird species originally described by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae, where it was given the binomial name of Recurvirostra avosetta. This species gets its English and scientific names from the Venetian name avosetta. It appeared first in Aldrovandi's Ornithologia (1603). While the name may refer to black and white outfits once worn by European advocates or lawyers, the actual etymology is uncertain. Other common names include black-capped avocet, Eurasian avocet or just avocet.
It is one of four species of avocet that make up the genus Recurvirostra. The genus name is from Latin recurvus, "curved backwards" and rostrum, "bill". A 2004 study combining genetics and morphology showed that it was the most divergent species in the genus.