The term neophyte originates from the Greek word "neophytos" which is composed of the prefix "neo" which translates as first and "phyton" which means plant, for this reason it can be said that neophyte means newly planted. On the other hand, when it is used as an adjective to refer to a person, it is in order to describe that said individual is in the initial stages of some activity or task and that in addition to that he does not have full knowledge of said activity, it is say that you do not have the knowledge or experience necessary to carry out such activity.
For many, the use of this word is synonymous with cultism and for this reason its use is not frequent, since there are words that serve as a synonym, in addition to being much more frequent, some of them may be a novice, disciple, newbie, etc. A clear example of the use of this word is the one that was given in ancient times in the primitive Christian religion, to describe those new followers who were initiated in that religion. When a neophyte joined a new Christian community was frequent that it was received with great affection by the same and to be able to recognize it from the rest, you will be assigned a special dress, which was characterized by being colored white.
Just as in Christianity, in other religions and secular orders, it was very common for this type of people to be called novices and in general, in order to be admitted, it was necessary that they first prove their worth, which is why it was necessary that they will carry out a kind of trial period which is called the novitiate, where they had to carry out various activities related to religion or order in order to give a more in-depth knowledge of the rules and customs of the same.
On the other hand, in everyday language it is normal for this word to be used to describe those people who are new to a place or, failing that, are starting an activity, whether at work, school, etc. This type of people generally does not have any knowledge about the activity they carry out, this is due to inexperience, therefore it is necessary that they have a certain time where they are allowed to interact with the environment where they should develop.
