'data-agnostic' originates from the combination of 'data' and 'agnostic', where 'agnostic' is derived from Greek 'agnostos', meaning 'unknown' or 'unknowable'.

'agnostic' was first used in the 19th century to describe a philosophical position regarding the unknowability of certain truths, and later adapted in the tech industry to describe systems not tied to specific data.

Initially, 'agnostic' referred to philosophical skepticism, but in modern usage, it has evolved to describe systems or software that are neutral or independent of specific data types.