fetishization

The word's journey begins with the Portuguese 'feitiço', meaning a charm or object of sorcery, which itself derives from the Latin 'factītius', implying something artificially made. This entered English as 'fetish' to describe an object believed to have magical power or one that is irrationally revered. The addition of the Greek-derived suffix '-ize' transforms it into a verb meaning "to make into or treat as a fetish." Finally, the Latinate suffix '-ation' is appended to form a noun denoting the process or result of this action. Thus, the literal construction "the process of making into a magical object" evolved into the modern abstract meaning of attributing excessive, obsessive, or sexualized power to an idea or entity.

Structure: fetish + ize + ation - fetish: From Portuguese 'feitiço' (charm, sorcery), via Latin 'factītius' (artificial, made by art). Functions as the core noun root. - ize: A verb-forming suffix of Greek origin (via Latin -izāre), meaning "to make, to become, to treat in a specific way". - ation: A noun-forming suffix of Latin origin (-ātiōn-), indicating an action, process, or result.