virgule

We call it a slash, that separating mark in and/or or he/she. But it has a better name: it's a virgule. Virgule comes to us from Latin; it's derived from a diminutive form of virga, which means "twig," "rod," or "wand."

In The Origins of European Thought, R. B. Onians connects Latin words containing vir- or ver-such as virga (rod), vir (man), virgo (maiden), vires (strength), viridis (green), and ver (spring). Underlying them all, Onians finds the idea of vital, fresh sap. The legacy of these words in English is seen not only with virgule, virile, and virgin, but also with the adjective viridescent (green) and the noun vireo (a kind of green-tinged bird).

Sources: AHD, The Origins of European Thought (by R. B. Onians), and The New College Latin and English Dictionary (by John Traupman)