'rarely-requested' originates from the combination of 'rarely,' meaning 'not often,' and 'requested,' the past participle of 'request,' meaning 'to ask for.'

'rarely' and 'requested' have been used in English since the Middle Ages, with 'rarely' coming from Old English 'hrēor' and 'requested' from Old French 'requester.'

Initially, 'rarely' meant 'seldom' and 'requested' meant 'asked for,' and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.