'apocryphalist' originates from English, specifically formed from the adjective 'apocryphal' + the agent suffix '-ist' (ultimately from Greek/Latin suffixes), where 'apocryphal' comes from Greek 'apokryphos', in which 'apo-' meant 'away' and 'kryphō' (from 'kryptos') meant 'to hide' or 'hidden'.

'apocryphal' changed from Greek 'apokryphos' to Late Latin 'apocryphus', passed into Medieval/Church Latin and Middle English as 'apocryphal', and the modern English agent noun 'apocryphalist' was later formed by adding the English '-ist' to denote a person associated with apocrypha or the treatment of texts as apocryphal.

Initially it meant 'hidden' (that which is concealed), but over time it evolved to mean 'of doubtful authenticity' or 'not canonical'; 'apocryphalist' therefore came to mean a person associated with such hidden or doubtful texts or with treating tales as spurious.