Christianos

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

  1. A follower of the teachings and beliefs centered on the life and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, regarded as the Messiah by adherents; a member of the religious community practicing Christianity, characterized by faith in Christ as the son of God; a historical term for individuals identifying with the Christian faith, especially in early Christian texts
  2. An individual acknowledging Jesus Christ as divine and Savior, practicing the faith system developed around His message; a believer in the doctrines and rituals of Christianity encompassing various denominations; a term applied to persons living in accordance with the moral and spiritual principles attributed to Christ
  3. One who embraces the Christian faith, recognizing the significance of Jesus as the central figure of salvation; a person affiliated with the church and the broader Christian tradition; a designation used especially in antiquity to denote members of the Christian religion distinct from other groups

Etymology: Christianos is the Greek noun for a follower of Christ, and it appears in the New Testament only three times. In Acts 11:26, the text says the disciples were first called "Christianoi" at Antioch. The name was likely a label given by outsiders, and the suffix "-ianos" signals "belonging to" or "partisan of," much like a Caesarian or a Herodian, people attached to a leader. Believers do not seem to have chosen the name for themselves at first; they used terms like "the brethren" or "the Way." In Greek, the ending "-ianos" was added to names to mean an adherent of that person. Christianos follows this pattern with Christos, the Greek rendering of the Hebrew "messiah," meaning "anointed one." The root word for the title, "chriein," meant "to anoint" or "to smear with oil," the same physical act that gave the title its sense of being specially chosen. Through Latin "christianus," the word passed into English and the other European languages, where it has remained the standard name for the religion's adherents.

Synonyms: christians, believers, followers, disciples

Antonyms: nonbelievers, pagans, atheists