'archebiosis' originates from Greek, specifically the roots 'arkhē' and 'bíos', where 'arkhē' meant 'beginning' and 'bíos' meant 'life'.

'archebiosis' is a modern formation coined from Greek roots (via Neo-Latin/modern scientific coinage) and modeled on related scientific terms (e.g., 'abiogenesis'); it did not evolve through distinct medieval English forms but entered usage as a technical/coined term in scientific literature.

Initially, it meant 'the beginning or arising of life', and this core meaning has largely remained in modern usage as a term referring to origin-of-life processes.