Capitalization comes from the verb capitalize, which itself comes from the word capital. To capitalize means to convert something into capital. So at face val

Capitalization comes from the verb capitalize, which itself comes from the word capital. To capitalize means to convert something into capital. So at face value "market capitalization" means "degree to which a market was converted into capital", which is clearly not how the word is used. If you want a similar word: crystal -> crystallize -> crystallization capital -> capitalize -> capitalization Both describe a conversion, except that "market capitalization" is not about a process at all.