English
civilize
Civilize comes from French civiliser ‘to civilize’, from Latin cīvis ‘citizen’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- ‘to be lying down’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱey-‘to be lying down’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*keiwis‘society’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEceivis
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcīvis‘citizen’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcīvīlis‘civic, civil’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentcivil
- French, derivedc. 1600–presentciviliser‘to civilize’
- Englishtodaycivilize
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱey-‘to be lying down’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*keiwis‘society’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEceivis
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcīvis‘citizen’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcīvīlis‘civic, civil’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentcivil
- French, derivedc. 1600–presentciviliser‘to civilize’
- Englishtodaycivilize
Formed from civil + -ize
Proto-Indo-European *ḱey-
Latin cīvis ‘citizen’
Latin cīvīlis ‘relating to a citizen’
Old French civil
Middle English cyvyl
English civil
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- ‘to be lying down’
home, city, hide, cemetery, coma, haunt, hame, ceilidh, 31 more
through Latin ceivis
citadel, civics, civitas, 18 more
through Latin cīvis ‘citizen’
through Latin cīvīlis ‘civic, civil’
Today it means
verb American and Oxford British standard spelling of civilise.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- / civilize