'earlier-shown' originates from the combination of 'earlier' and 'shown', where 'earlier' is the comparative form of 'early', and 'shown' is the past participle of 'show'.

'earlier' evolved from Old English 'ærlic', and 'shown' from Old English 'sceawian', eventually forming the modern English term 'earlier-shown'.

Initially, 'earlier' meant 'more early', and 'shown' meant 'displayed', which together convey the idea of something displayed previously.