* ὄνομα (ónoma) meaning "name"
* ποιεῖν (poieîn) meaning "to make"
Therefore, the literal meaning of the word is "name-making".
This reflects the core concept of onomatopoeia: the creation of words that imitate the sounds they represent.
It's worth noting that while the word "onomatopoeia" itself is a loanword from Greek, the concept of using words to mimic sounds is present in all languages.