baptize

 
Pronunciation: /bapˈtʌɪz/
(also baptise)

verb

[with object and often with complement]
  • administer baptism to (someone); christen: he was baptized Joshua
  • admit (someone) into a specified Church by baptism: Mark had been baptized a Catholic
  • give a name or nickname to: the media have baptized the murderer ‘The Babysitter’

Origin:

Middle English: via Old French from ecclesiastical Latin baptizare, from Greek baptizein 'immerse, baptize'