'abastardize' originates from the prefix 'a-' meaning 'to' or 'toward' and the root 'bastardize,' which means 'to make illegitimate or corrupt.'

'bastardize' changed from the Old French word 'bastard,' which referred to an illegitimate child, and eventually became the modern English word 'bastardize' through Middle English.

Initially, it meant 'to make illegitimate,' but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'to debase or corrupt.'