'arsyversy' originates in colloquial British English, formed by blending 'arse' with a playful rhyming reduplication pattern (as in 'higgledy‑piggledy'); the element 'arse' originally referred to the buttocks but is often used pejoratively to suggest stubbornness or silliness.

'arsyversy' appears as a dialectal/informal variant attested in regional British English from the late 19th to 20th century; the form developed from spoken reduplicative play ('arsey‑versey', 'arsey‑versy') and later stabilized in spellings like 'arsyversy' or 'arseyversy'.

Initially tied to a crude reference to 'arse' or used simply as a playful, mildly insulting tag, it shifted to a broader sense meaning 'contrary, petulant' and by extension 'disordered' in informal use.