'pH-independent' originates from the chemistry abbreviation 'pH' (from the Latin phrase 'potentia hydrogenii', coined in modern chemistry) and the Latin word 'independens', where 'potentia hydrogenii' meant 'power (or potential) of hydrogen' and the Latin prefix 'in-' meant 'not' while 'dependens' meant 'hanging or depending'.

'pH' was introduced into scientific usage by Søren P.L. Sørensen in the early 20th century as an abbreviation of the Latin phrase 'potentia hydrogenii'; 'independens' passed from Latin into Middle English as 'independent' and became the modern English adjective 'independent', and the compound 'pH-independent' emerged in scientific English to describe properties not affected by pH.

Initially, 'pH' referred specifically to the 'power of hydrogen' (a numeric measure of acidity) and 'independent' meant 'not depending or hanging on'; combined, the term evolved to mean 'not affected by pH' in scientific contexts.