'tabulator' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'tabula', where 'tabula' meant 'table, board, or writing tablet'. The modern noun was formed from the verb 'tabulate' with the agentive suffix '-or'.

'tabulator' changed from the Medieval Latin word 'tabulator' (and from the verb 'tabulate', ultimately from Latin 'tabulare') and entered English in the late 19th century to name machines that produced tables and summaries, becoming the modern English word 'tabulator'.

Initially, it meant 'one who makes or arranges tables or records', but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'a device or person that tabulates (counts, arranges, and summarizes data)'.