'anonymize' originates from modern English, ultimately from Greek, specifically the word 'anōnumos', where 'a-' meant 'not' and 'onym/ónuma' meant 'name'.

'anonymize' changed from French and Latin-influenced forms of 'anonymous' (Middle French 'anonyme', Medieval Latin 'anonymus') and later took the verb-forming suffix '-ize' in modern English to become 'anonymize'.

Initially it meant 'without a name' or 'nameless', but over time it evolved into the modern verb meaning 'to make something not attributable to an individual' or 'to remove identifying information'.