Christens

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To officially name or dedicate someone, typically a baby, in a religious ceremony known as baptism
2. To perform a ceremony of baptism where a person is formally given a name and welcomed into a faith community
3. To ceremonially assign a name to a person or thing, often accompanied by a ritual act such as baptism

Etymology: "Christens" is the third-person singular form of "christen", so the verb itself is the story here. Its root is Old English "cristen", meaning "Christian", which was combined with the suffix "-nian" to form "cristnian", meaning "to baptise". The word was therefore built around the act of making someone a Christian, and the baptism ceremony sits at the heart of its meaning from the start. Over the centuries the word passed through Middle English as "cristenen" and "cristnien", and its close relatives are found across the Germanic languages, including Dutch "kerstenen", Swedish "kristna" and Icelandic "kristna". The shared pattern shows that the verb was a religious term that spread alongside Christianity itself. Its meaning has also widened. Beyond the religious ceremony, people now use "christen" for the first use of something, such as christening a new ship with a bottle of champagne or christening a new pair of shoes by wearing them out for the first time.

Synonyms: baptizes, names, dedicates