# John the Baptiser? Canadian/American usage? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 13, 2007, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876 "2007-01-13T23:14:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2007, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/1 "2007-01-13T23:14:56Z")
At mass this morning we had a visiting priest. From his accent he would have been Canadian or American. During the homily he made several references to John the Baptiser. Here it has always been John the Baptist, and I thought that this was fairly standard throughout the English-speaking world. Is this the normal Canadian/American usage? Or was it a sign of changing practice? Have there been any recent scholarly developments favouring the Baptiser usage? It would, in fact, make more sense. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2007, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/2 "2007-01-13T23:20:06Z")
I have _never_ heard this usage, but then I am not a Christian and it’s quite possible that I am not up on the latest terminology. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2007, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/3 "2007-01-13T23:33:04Z")
[From Wiki.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptism_of_Jesus) > [@](#): > > The narrative begins with a description of a man that Matthew names John the Baptist, Luke names John the son of Zacharias, and many manuscripts of Mark refer to as John the baptiser. On this latter name, Anabaptists insist on the more emphatic translation John the Immerser. A few hundred Google entries for “John the Baptiser”, but most seem to be for “John the Baptist.” The latter is as I was brought up to call him. ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2007, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/4 "2007-01-13T23:36:08Z")
American Protestant here. I’ve never heard him called anything but John the Baptist. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2007, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/5 "2007-01-13T23:47:23Z")
At the age of 45, this American has never heard it as “the Baptiser.” ---
**Author:** ![Eureka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/74df32/32.png) [@Eureka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eureka)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/6 "2007-01-14T00:01:35Z")
I, on the other hand (a thirty-ish American who has attended mostly United Methodist Churches) have heard such usage. I wouldn’t say it is as common as John the Baptist, but sometimes I think when someone wishes to emphasize that John the Baptizer was named because he baptized people and not because he was the forerunner of the Baptist church. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/7 "2007-01-14T00:19:33Z")
Only time I’ve seen the use mentioned in the OP outside of the OP itself was in [this version](http://www.pidginbible.org/index.htm). Instead of calling him _John the Baptist in the Wilderness_, he’s referred to as _John the Baptizer guy in the Boonies_. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/8 "2007-01-14T00:20:57Z")
U.S. citizen who has been living in Canada for 15 years. Mom’s side Catholic, father’s side Presbyterian) Never once heard anyone say “baptiser.” That’s just weird . (Granted, I don’t go to church much.) (Okay, I don’t go to church ever.) ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/9 "2007-01-14T01:26:44Z")
I had a very cute question from a student last term. "I’m wondering why sometimes paintings are labelled as having someone like “John the Baptist” or “John the Evangelist”? What’s the difference? I know they’re different sects of the religion, but how do we know that he is “the Evangelist” like in Masaccio’s Trinity? " Took me a couple of minutes to figure out what the student was asking, and then I realized it was kind of a cool question and I’d forgotten how complicated it could all be from scratch. So I guess the kook homilitician of the OP had a good point. ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/10 "2007-01-14T01:28:09Z")
Maybe he’s related to Dub the Decider? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/11 "2007-01-14T01:46:27Z")
35, raised Catholic in Canada. I’ve never seen or heard “John the Baptizer” in my entire life until reading this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/12 "2007-01-14T03:14:49Z")
I have seen this. It’s sort of a “PC” usage, since the original meaning of “Baptist” in John’s name was “one who baptizes” and it’s easy to confuse that with Baptist = member of a baptist church. It clarifies why this particular John got that sobriquet. As for “John the Evangelist” – the original Evangelists were four in number, the guys who wrote the four Gospels. To apply the term to one who tries to instigate people to convert and conducts revivals and such is a much later development. (Derivation’s interesting: “eu-angelos” = messenger of good news, i.e, M.E. “good-spiel” = Gospel ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/13 "2007-01-14T04:57:57Z")
[QUOTE=Polycarp] I have seen this. It’s sort of a “PC” usage [/QUOTE] Thanks. I did wonder if that were the case. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2007, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-the-baptiser-canadian-american-usage/387876/14 "2007-01-14T07:11:54Z")
I would not consider it a “PC” usage, but it is a fairly new usage. It appears to come from people trying to make sure that John is known for his actions rather than just bearing a title “Baptist.” At a guess, it would be associated with a movement within Christianity rather than simply a regional expression. On the other hand, I could not identify any _particular_ group who uses it. I tend to think of it as a Pentecostal/Charismatic expression, but I know that I have heard it used by people who are not members of a Pentecostal denomination or the Charismatic wing of the RCC.