'oft-discussed' originates from English, specifically the words 'oft' and 'discussed', where 'oft' (from Old English 'oft') meant 'often' and 'discussed' is the past participle form of the verb 'discuss' (from Latin via Old French).

'discussed' changed from Middle English and Old French forms of 'discuss' (Old French 'discuter') and ultimately from Latin 'discutere' ('dis-' + 'quatere' meaning 'to shake apart, examine'); 'oft' comes from Old English 'oft' and the compound formed in Modern English as 'oft-discussed'.

Initially, the components meant 'often' (for 'oft') and 'examined/talked about' (for the past participle of 'discuss'); over time the compound came to mean 'frequently talked about' as a descriptive adjective.