'artistdom' originates in Modern English as a compound of 'artist' + the suffix '-dom'. 'Artist' ultimately traces back to Latin (via Italian/French) 'artista' from 'ars' meaning 'skill, craft', and the suffix '-dom' comes from Old English 'dom' meaning 'state, condition, realm'.

'artist' developed from Old French/Italian 'artista' (from Latin 'ars'); the element '-dom' is from Old English 'dom'. The compound 'artistdom' was formed in Modern English by analogy with compounds like 'kingdom' and 'officialdom', rather than evolving from a single medieval precursor.

The term originally denoted the 'state or realm of artists' and has retained that core meaning as a label for the social world or collective of artists.