'arabic-influenced' originates from English, specifically the combination of the adjective 'Arabic' and the past-participle adjective 'influenced'. 'Arabic' ultimately derives from Arabic 'ʿarabī' (from 'ʿArab'), where 'ʿArab' referred to the Arabs and 'al-' was the definite article; 'influenced' comes via Old French and Latin 'influere', where 'in-' meant 'into' and 'fluere' meant 'to flow.'

'Arabic' entered European languages via Medieval Latin ('Arabicus') and Old French, later becoming 'Arabic' in Modern English; 'influence' developed from Latin 'influere' to Old French 'influencer' and Middle English 'influence', with 'influenced' formed as the past participle and used adjectivally to denote being affected by something.

Initially, 'Arabic' referred primarily to the people and their language and 'influence' originally carried a sense of 'a flowing in' (literally); over time, 'influence' acquired the general sense 'power to affect', and the compound 'Arabic-influenced' came to mean 'affected or shaped by Arabic (language, culture, style)'.