Christianise

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To bring a person or community to adopt the Christian faith ; to give a non-religious institution or practice a Christian character or form
2. To convert people or a population to the religion of Christ ; to shape a culture, custom or institution so that it reflects Christian belief
3. To win over individuals or groups to Christian faith ; to adapt something such as a ritual, law or place so that it accords with Christian teaching

Etymology: The verb is simply "Christian" plus a suffix, and the suffix has a longer history than most readers would guess. The ending "-ize" traces back through Late Latin "-izare" to the ancient Greek "-izein", where it formed verbs meaning "to do, make, or act like" something, so that a word could mean "to make something in a certain way." The Greek ending passed into Latin as "-izō", and from there it moved through Middle French "-iser" into Middle English as "-isen", which eventually settled into the modern English "-ize." Only the final stage is English. Because "Christian" was already in use, English speakers could attach the suffix to it to build a new verb meaning "to make Christian," and "christianize" follows this pattern. The result is a straightforward compound of a noun and a verb-forming ending, with no surprises in its core meaning: to bring people or places under Christian faith and practice.

Synonyms: convert, evangelize, proselytize

Antonyms: secularize, dechristianize