'non-amphisbaenian' originates from English, specifically the prefix 'non-' + 'amphisbaenian', where 'non-' meant 'not' and 'amphisbaenian' comes from Greek 'amphisbaîna/amphisbaínios' referring to the mythical 'amphisbaena' (a two‑headed or double‑ended serpent).

'amphisbaenian' entered scientific English via Latin and Neo‑Latin from Greek 'amphisbaîna' (and Medieval Latin 'amphisbaena'); the modern adjective/noun 'amphisbaenian' developed to denote members of the reptile group Amphisbaenia, and 'non-' was later prefixed in English to negate it, producing 'non-amphisbaenian'.

Initially linked to the mythic 'amphisbaena' meaning 'both ways' or 'double‑ended,' the term came to denote a specific group of burrowing reptiles; 'non-amphisbaenian' is a later negated form meaning 'not belonging to that group.'