'anthropocentric' originates from Greek and Modern Latin elements: the Greek 'ánthrōpos' meaning 'human' (as the combining form 'anthropo-') plus the suffix from Greek 'kentrikos' via Latin/Modern French 'centric' meaning 'center'.

'anthropocentric' was formed in English from Modern Latin/Greek combining forms (e.g. 'anthropo-' + '-centric') in the late 19th to early 20th century, building on earlier terms like 'anthropocentrism'.

Initially it meant 'placing humans at the center' in a descriptive sense; over time it has retained that core meaning but is often used critically in environmental and philosophical contexts to denote a biased or human-dominant viewpoint.