Babel

Babel

Babel ( _he. בָּבֶל; "Bavel") ( _ar. بابل; "Babel") is the name used in the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an for the city of Babylon (Akkadian Babilu), notable in Genesis as the location of the Tower of Babel.

In Gen. 11:9, the name of Babel is etymologized by association with the Hebrew verb "balal", "to confuse or confound": "Balal" is regarded as a contraction of earlier "*balbal". The name "bab-ilu" in Akkadian means "gate of god" (from "bab" "gate" + "ilu" "god"). The word "bab-el" can also be seen to mean "gate of god" (from "bab" "gate" + "el" "god").

Babel is mentioned in Genesis 10:10 as the home city of Nimrod:

[10] And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel (Persia), and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. [11] Out of that land went forth Asshur, and built Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, [12] And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city. (KJV)

According to Genesis 11:1–9, humankind, after the deluge, traveled from the mountain where the ark had rested, and settled in "a plain in the land of Shinar." Here, they attempted to build a city and a tower whose top would be in the Heavens, the Tower of Babel.

The attempt to build the city of Babel with its tower, caused God to respond. He confused the language of the people, ultimately halting the project, and scattered them across the earth.

Babel features in the prophecies of Jeremiah, and Nebuchadnezzar's siege of Jerusalem is told in 2 Kings. The Book of Daniel is set at time of the Babylonian captivity. Such later references to Babel are normally translated into the more familiar Greek form "Babylon".

The Book of Mormon, a book of scripture used by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, features a story about a family who prayed that their language would not be confounded. Their prayers were answered and they were led to the Americas.

References


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  • Babel — ● Babel nom féminin Tour de Babel ou Babel, lieu où l on parle un grand nombre de langues différentes ; endroit où règne une grande confusion, où tout le monde parle sans pouvoir s entendre. ● Babel (expressions) nom féminin Tour de Babel ou… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • BABEL (I.) — Né le 13 juillet 1894 à Odessa dans une famille juive aisée, Isaac Babel étudie à l’École de commerce d’Odessa, tout en recevant parallèlement une éducation religieuse juive; il lit le yiddish et acquiert en outre une bonne maîtrise du français.… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Babel — ist der hebräische Name einer antiken Stadt, siehe Babylon eine Erzählung des Alten Testamentes der Bibel, siehe Turmbau zu Babel eine Erzählung und eine Buchreihe von Jorge Luis Borges, siehe Die Bibliothek von Babel ein Film des Mexikaners… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Babel — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Para otros usos de este término, véase Babel (desambiguación). La Torre de Babel (1563) de Pieter Brueghel el Viejo, en el Kunsthistorisches Museum (Viena) Bab …   Wikipedia Español

  • Babel — • The word is derived from the Babylonian bab ilu, meaning gate of God Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Babel     Babel     † …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Babel — (Трир,Германия) Категория отеля: Адрес: Herrenbrünnchen 84 , 54290 Трир, Германия …   Каталог отелей

  • Babel — Ba bel, n. [Heb. B[=a]bel, the name of the capital of Babylonia; in Genesis associated with the idea of confusion. ] 1. The city and tower in the land of Shinar, where the confusion of languages took place. [1913 Webster] Therefore is the name of …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • babel — ‘Desorden y confusión’. Es válido su uso en ambos géneros, aunque existe una clara preferencia por el femenino: «Vivía pues nuestro hombre en medio de una babel de libros» (RBastos Vigilia [Par. 1992]); «Ni beato ni beatillas se aclaran en el… …   Diccionario panhispánico de dudas

  • bąbel — I {{/stl 13}}{{stl 8}}rz. mnż III, D. bąbelbla; lm D. bąbelbli {{/stl 8}}{{stl 20}} {{/stl 20}}{{stl 12}}1. {{/stl 12}}{{stl 7}} pęcherzyk gazu w cieczy lub na jej powierzchni; bańka : {{/stl 7}}{{stl 10}}Bąble na gotującej się wodzie. {{/stl… …   Langenscheidt Polski wyjaśnień

  • Babel B&B — (Кампи Салентина,Италия) Категория отеля: Адрес: Via Capitano Lega 43, 73012 Кампи Салент …   Каталог отелей

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