Where does “Christian” come from?
Christian derives from Latin Christianus, from Ancient Greek Χριστιανός, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European gʰer-, meaning to rub or anoint.
Christian (English): A believer in Christianity; An individual who...
Definitions
- A believer in Christianity; An individual who...
Ancestry of “Christian”, step by step
Christian traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English Cristien
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | Cristien | Christian; of those who believe in Christ;... |
| 2 | Old French | chrestien | Christian |
| 3 | Latin | Christiānus | Christian |
| 4 | Latin | Chrīstus | — |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | Χριστός | anointed; messiah; annointed, the annointed one,... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | χρίω | to rub or smear (especially the body) with oil or unguents; to anoint |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰrēy- | to smear; to paint, streak, smear |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | gʰer- | to rub; to stroke; to grind |
via Latin Christianus
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | Christianus | Christian; a Christian person, a Christian |
| 2 | Latin | -ianus | Enlarged form of -ānus, especially frequent in... |
| 3 | Latin | -anus | Of or pertaining to; -ian |
| 4 | Latin | -um | nominative neuter singular of -us; accusative... |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | *-om | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | *-oHom | — |