Occidentalize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To adapt or integrate features typical of Western societies into a different cultural context
2. To influence a non-Western culture by introducing Western ideals, practices, or lifestyles
3. To incorporate cultural elements typical of the West into another society or context

Etymology: "Occidentalize" is a plain formation: the adjective "occidental" (from Latin "occidentalis", meaning "western", from "occidens", the setting sun or the west) combined with the verb-forming suffix "-ize", which comes via Latin and Greek and turns a base into a verb meaning "to make or become like" that base. So the word means, literally, to make something western. The adjective itself carries the sun in it. Latin "occidere" meant "to fall" or "to set", and "occidens" was the place where the sun sets, so "occidental" reflects a view of the world oriented from the east, with the west defined by sunset. "Orient", its counterpart, comes from the rising sun. The verb therefore describes the act of giving a place or culture the features associated with that sunset region, an idea that depends entirely on where the speaker stands.

Synonyms: westernize, modernize

Antonyms: easternize