'archaeographic' originates from modern English formation, built from 'archaeography' + the adjectival suffix '-ic', where the prefix 'archaeo-' comes from Greek 'arkhaios' meaning 'ancient' and the root 'graph' (from Greek 'graphein') meant 'to write'.

'archaeographic' developed from the noun 'archaeography' (coined in the 19th century from Greek elements), itself formed from Greek 'arkhaios' + 'graphē' (writing); the adjective arose by adding the English suffix '-ic' to create a word meaning 'pertaining to archaeography'.

Initially the root elements meant 'writing about ancient things' or 'records of the ancient', and over time the term came to be used specifically for matters 'relating to the scholarly description, editing, and publication of ancient documents' — the modern specialized sense.