British people believe it is -ize that is the American upstart

Weird lot those Britons. Especially when it comes to the mother tongue. The suffix -ize has a zed in the original Greek. BTW, the OED opted for the form -ize. Good enough for Mr Murray, and it's goodenough for me.

British English has no claim to being older than USan English or the Oz/Kiwi versions. The Cockney and the Queen are just as distant from Caedmon and Bede as I am.

Ceci n'est pas un seing.