'seldom-noted' originates from English, specifically the words 'seldom' and 'noted', where 'seldom' comes from Old English 'seld' meaning 'rare, infrequent' and 'noted' derives ultimately from Latin 'notare' (via Old French 'noter') meaning 'to mark, notice.'

'seldom' changed from Old English 'seld' (rare) into Middle English 'seldom', while 'noted' developed from Latin 'notare' → Old French 'noter' → Middle English 'noten/nte' and into the adjective 'noted'; the compound phrase 'seldom-noted' formed in modern English by combining these elements to describe things that are rarely noticed.

Initially the elements meant 'rare/infrequent' and 'marked/noted' separately; over time the compound came to mean 'rarely noticed'—that is, something that is infrequently observed or remarked upon.