The Rice University Neologisms Database

To transform into a more powerful version of yourself. Only used in reference to Digimon. The cartoon “Digimon: Digital Monsters” began in February 1999. It is the dubbed version of the Japanese anime “デジモン　アドベンチャー” (Digimon Adventures), pronounced “Dejimon Adobenchaa”. The story centered around seven kids who were transported to digital world. Once there, each child met their own Digimon, a digital creature capable of speech and magical attacks. When the child is in physical danger, the Digimon will “digivolve” or temporarily transform into a more powerful version of itself. During the run of the anime over four seasons, the noun ‘digivolution’ has been derived from ‘digivolve’ as well as the opposite verb ‘dedigivolve’. In the original version, whenever a Digimon transformed, the Japanese word “進化する” (shinka suru), which means 'to evolve,' was used instead of a neologism. However, in 1998, the popular anime Pokemon began airing in America. When a Pokemon transforms into a more powerful version of itself, the word ‘to evolve’ is also used. Therefore, in order to differentiate themselves from the established king of the monster-collecting genre, the dubbers decided to use the word ‘to digivolve’ instead. Furthermore, a Pokemon’s transformation is permanent, while a Digimon’s is only temporary. Thus, the addition of the word ‘digital’ also carries the notion of "easily changed."