The word star is from the Middle English word sterre, from the Old English word steorra, which is from the Proto-Germanic word sterron. This is traced to the Proto-Indo-European h₂stḗr which means to "glower, shiner”. It is compared to Old High German sterno, Latin stella, Greek astēr, astro, among others.
The bottom line is that the word star was a result of a series of transformations from an earlier designated word for those twinkling objects in the sky. How the word came to be was a consensus of the people involved in naming that object, and that word may be modified by the new users of that word. Of course, the name varies depending on the language, and they may trace the same roots or not. Still, they pertain the same object and the name is a matter of choice on what they think may best describe the object. So why is a star called a star? Because they named it star.
Sources:
Star. (n.d.). Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved December 19, 2013, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/star
Star. (n.d.). Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved December 19, 2013, fromhttp://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=star&allowed_in_frame=0
Star. (n.d.). Wiktionary.org. Retrieved December 19, 2013, fromhttp://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/star
Appendix:Proto-Indo-European/h₂stḗr. (n.d.). Wiktionary.org. Retrieved from December 19, 2013, from http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Appendix:Proto-Indo-European/h%E2%82%82st%E1%B8%97r#Proto-Indo-European
Prepared by: Keanu Sarmiento
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