'non-tropical' originates from the prefix 'non-' meaning 'not' and the word 'tropical', which comes from the Greek word 'tropikos', meaning 'pertaining to a turn or change'.

'tropikos' transformed into the Latin word 'tropicus', and eventually became the modern English word 'tropical'. The prefix 'non-' was added to denote the opposite.

Initially, 'tropical' meant 'pertaining to a turn or change', but over time it evolved to refer to regions near the equator. 'Non-tropical' thus means not related to these regions.