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Just to clarify, I know more or less how the p-value works, and that the topic of how to properly use the p-value for statistics has already been addressed on this site.

I was really just wondering what it actually stood for, as I couldn't find an answer elsewhere on the internet.

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    this question may help: http://stats.stackexchange.com/questions/31/what-is-the-meaning-of-p-values-and-t-values-in-statistical-tests – 2017-01-23

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The p stands for probability. A p-value is the probability that we get a sample like the one you tested by random chance alone. Thus, a low p-value tells you that it is extremely unlikely for a sample like the one you have to occur based on random chance.

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    Very unlikely _under the null hypothesis._ – 2017-01-23
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    Interesting. I guess that's kind of what I was assuming it was, but I thought it'd be something more descriptive than that – 2017-01-23
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I believe it originates from Karl Pearson formally, so the P may stand for Pearson. I teach my students to think of the p-value as a plausibility-value, as a measure of how plausible the null hypothesis is, though I know that is not technically correct.