'meristem' originates from New Latin (or modern botanical Latin), specifically the word 'meristem', ultimately from Ancient Greek 'meristēma' meaning 'a dividing thing' or 'division', from the verb 'merizein' meaning 'to divide'.

'meristēma' (Greek) passed into New/Modern Latin as 'meristem' in botanical usage and was adopted into English in the 19th century to refer specifically to plant tissues that divide, giving the modern English word 'meristem'.

Initially it referred broadly to something 'divided' or a 'division'; over time it became specialized in botanical contexts to mean 'a tissue of undifferentiated plant cells that divides to produce new tissues and organs'.