'afterlife-related' originates from English, specifically formed from the noun 'afterlife' and the adjective 'related', where 'afterlife' combines the Old English elements 'æfter' (after) and 'līf' (life) meaning 'life after death', and 'related' ultimately comes from Latin 'relatus', the past participle of 'referre'.

'afterlife' developed in English from Old English elements 'æfter' + 'līf' and was used in Modern English to mean 'life after death'; 'related' entered English via Old French/Latin (from Latin 'referre' → past participle 'relatus') and became the adjective 'related' in Middle English. The compound 'afterlife-related' is a modern English formation combining these two words.

Initially, 'afterlife' referred simply to 'time or existence after death' and 'related' meant 'connected' (from 'bring back/carry back'); together the modern compound came to mean 'connected with matters of the afterlife' with little semantic shift from the component meanings.