'community-driven' originates from the combination of 'community' and 'driven,' where 'community' refers to a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common, and 'driven' means motivated or propelled by a particular force or influence.

'Community' comes from the Latin word 'communitas,' meaning 'common, public, shared by all or many,' and 'driven' is the past participle of 'drive,' which comes from the Old English 'drīfan,' meaning 'to force (a person or animal) to move in a particular direction.'

Initially, 'community-driven' meant 'motivated by the community,' and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.