Barn owl once was used to refer to Tyto alba which is nowadays Western Barn owl (Cú lợn lưng xám, Tyto alba), also known as the common barn owl, Eurasian barn owl.

The barn owls, owls in the genus Tyto, are the most widely distributed genus of owls in the world. 
The term may be used to describe the whole family Tytonidae, though this also includes the bay owls in the genus Phodilus.

Strigiformes, Strigidae: from "Strix", a Latin word for owl (also the same in Greek).
Tyto: Greek tuto owl, night-owl.
alba: Latin for white.