'bell-lover' originates from Modern English, specifically the combination of the noun 'bell' and the noun 'lover' (a person who loves something).

'bell' comes from Old English 'belle', ultimately from Proto-Germanic '*bellōn' meaning a ringing instrument; 'lover' derives from Old English 'lufian'/'lufu' (to love, affection) from Proto-Germanic roots related to desire/affection. The compound 'bell-lover' is a modern English formation by combining these two words.

The component words originally meant 'a ringing instrument' ('bell') and 'one who loves' ('lover'); the compound's meaning has straightforwardly come to mean 'a person who loves bells' without major semantic shift.