"capable of living without oxygen," 1884 (earlier
anaerobian, 1879), from French
anaérobie, coined 1863 by French bacteriologist Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), from Greek
an- "without" (see
an- (1)) +
aer "air" (see
air (n.1)) +
bios "life," from PIE root
*gwei- "to live."
