'aquarist' originates from English, specifically formed from the word 'aquarium' with the suffix '-ist', where 'aquarium' came from Modern Latin 'aquarium' and 'aqua' meant 'water'.

'aquarium' comes from Latin 'aquarium' (from 'aqua' meaning 'water'), and the English noun 'aquarist' was created by adding the agent suffix '-ist' to refer to someone associated with an aquarium; this formation appeared in modern English in the late 19th to early 20th century.

Initially related to 'aquarium' as 'a place or container of water', the derived term 'aquarist' evolved to mean 'a person who keeps, maintains, breeds, or studies aquatic life in aquaria'.