'nonperipteral' originates from English, formed with the prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non' meaning 'not') plus 'peripteral', which ultimately derives from Greek 'peripteron'. In the Greek compound, 'peri-' meant 'around' and 'pteron' meant 'wing' or (by extension in architecture) a colonnade or structure surrounded by columns.

'peripteral' comes from Greek 'peripteron' (περίπτερον) via Late Latin/Medieval usage into English; 'nonperipteral' is a later English formation applying the productive prefix 'non-' to describe the absence of a peripteral arrangement.

Initially terms like 'peripteron' described a building with a surrounding colonnade; the compound 'nonperipteral' developed to denote the negation of that condition and has retained that specialized architectural meaning.