'non-imitative' originates from English, specifically from the negative prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non' meaning 'not') combined with 'imitative' derived from Latin 'imitari' meaning 'to copy or imitate'.

'imitative' comes from Latin 'imitari' which passed into Old French as 'imiter' and into Middle English as forms such as 'imitaten' before becoming modern English 'imitate' and the adjective 'imitative'; the prefix 'non-' has been used in English since Old English times (from Latin 'non' by way of usage) to form negations, producing the compound 'non-imitative'.

Initially the elements meant 'not' + 'to copy', and the combined term has retained the core sense of 'not copying' though it has been applied in different contexts (art, criticism, biology) to indicate originality or absence of mimicry.