'small-government' originates from English, specifically the words 'small' and 'government', where 'small' meant 'little' (Old English 'smael') and 'government' referred to the act or system of governing (from Old French 'governement').

'small' changed from Old English 'smael' (meaning 'little, narrow') and 'government' developed from Old French 'governement' (from Latin 'gubernare' 'to steer, govern'); the two words combined in modern English discourse to form the compound 'small government', widely used in political contexts from the 19th–20th centuries onward.

Individually, 'small' originally meant 'little' and 'government' meant 'the act or system of governing'; together as the compound, the phrase evolved from a literal description of a physically small government to a political label meaning preference for limited state power and minimal intervention.