'anhelation' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'anhēlātiō', from the verb 'anhēlāre', where the root 'anhēl-' meant 'out of breath; to pant'.

'anhēlātiō' in Late Latin was taken into scientific/medical English in the early modern period, becoming the modern English word 'anhelation'.

Initially, it meant 'panting or breathlessness', and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage (now chiefly rare/technical).