'anecdotalist' originates from English, specifically from the word 'anecdote' with the suffix '-ist', where 'anecdote' meant 'a short, amusing story' and '-ist' denotes a person who practices or is concerned with something.

'anecdotalist' was formed in English by combining 'anecdote' and '-ist', and eventually became the modern English word 'anecdotalist'.

Initially, it meant 'a person who tells anecdotes', and this meaning has remained the same in modern usage.