'eastern-influenced' originates from modern English, combining 'eastern' (from Old English 'ēast', ultimately from Proto-Germanic '*austraz', meaning 'east') and 'influenced' (from Latin 'influere', where 'in-' meant 'into' and 'fluere' meant 'to flow').

'east' developed from Old English 'ēast' into Middle English 'est' and then formed the adjective 'eastern'; 'influere' passed into Old French and Middle English as 'influence', with the past participle giving 'influenced'; the compound 'eastern-influenced' is a modern English formation combining the adjective and past participle.

Originally the roots referred separately to direction ('east') and the notion of flowing in ('influere'); over time the compound came to mean 'shaped or affected by characteristics of the East' rather than any literal 'flow'.