'nonpedagogical' originates from a combination of the English prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non', meaning 'not') and 'pedagogical', which ultimately traces back to Greek 'paidagōgos', where 'paid-' meant 'child' and 'agōgos' meant 'leader'.

'pedagogical' developed from Greek 'paidagōgos' via Latin 'paedagogus' and Medieval/Modern Latin/French forms into English 'pedagogic'/'pedagogical'. The English prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non') was later combined with 'pedagogical' to form 'nonpedagogical'.

Initially 'paidagōgos' referred to a 'leader/guide of children'; over time the root evolved into words relating to teaching and instruction ('pedagogy', 'pedagogical'), and 'nonpedagogical' came to mean 'not relating to teaching or instruction'.