When people ask what a rotating fan is called, they may mean two different things. First, almost every fan used in homes, industry and mining is a rotating fan in the sense that it has a rotating impeller or set of blades. Second, many people use the term for a pedestal or wall fan whose head swings from side to side; that type is commonly called an oscillating fan. In engineering and industrial ventilation, however, the more precise names are axial fan or centrifugal fan, depending on how the rotating impeller moves air.
In an axial fan, the rotating blades push air in a direction roughly parallel to the fan shaft, similar to a propeller. Most pedestal fans, wall fans, HVLS fans and many large mine ventilation fans are axial fans. The rotating part is called the impeller or rotor, and it is mounted on a shaft driven by a motor through direct coupling, belts or a gearbox. When you see a big fan at the end of a mine shaft or in a tunnel, you are usually looking at a large axial fan whose rotating impeller moves huge volumes of air.
In a centrifugal fan, the impeller still rotates, but air is thrown radially outward into a scroll casing and then discharged at a right angle to the inlet. These fans are often called centrifugal blowers and are used for dust collection, process exhaust and other high-pressure tasks. Although their rotating impellers may be hidden inside the casing, the operating principle is still based on rotation and the change in direction of air flow.
When the entire fan head or housing swings from side to side while the blades spin, we call it an oscillating fan. Oscillation helps distribute air across a wider area in rooms, workshops and some industrial spaces. In heavy industry and mining, similar effects are usually achieved by using multiple fixed fans, carefully positioned ducts or adjustable louvers, rather than oscillating large fans mechanically.
So, a “rotating fan” in the everyday sense is typically an axial fan, and when it sweeps back and forth to spread the airflow it is known as an oscillating fan. In professional ventilation design for industrial plants and mines, engineers talk instead about axial and centrifugal fans, impellers, and motor-driven rotors rather than using the general phrase “rotating fan”.
