'unencircled' originates from the English prefix 'un-' (Old English) meaning 'not' combined with the verb 'encircle' (from Old French 'encercler'), where the root 'circle' ultimately comes from Latin 'circus' / 'circulus' meaning 'ring'.

'encircle' changed from Old French 'encercler' and entered Middle English as forms like 'encircleden'/'encirclen', eventually becoming modern English 'encircle'; adding the Old English prefix 'un-' produced 'unencircle', with the adjective/past-participle form 'unencircled'.

Initially it meant simply 'not encircled' or 'freed from an encircling' in a literal sense; over time the form has been used both literally and figuratively (e.g., not surrounded or isolated in other contexts).