The story
From natural + -ist. Piecewise doublet of naturalista.
First known use, by meaning
- 16th–19th c. A natural philosopher; a scientist.
- from 16th c. A person who believes in or advocates the tenets of philosophical or methodological naturalism.
- from 17th c. An expert in natural history or the study of plants and animals.
- from 19th c. A creative artist who attempts to faithfully represent nature; an adherent of artistic naturalism.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.