'alphabetize' originates from the word 'alphabet,' which comes from the Greek 'alphabētos,' a combination of 'alpha' and 'beta,' the first two letters of the Greek alphabet.

'alphabet' transformed from the Greek 'alphabētos' into the Latin 'alphabetum,' and eventually became the modern English word 'alphabet.'

Initially, it referred to the sequence of letters, but over time it evolved to mean arranging items in that sequence.