Source: DKFindOut
Introduction –
When it comes to the historically rich region of Mesopotamia, Babylon is arguably the most renowned of all cities. An ancient settlement that harks back to the dominions of Sargon of Akkad (circa 24th century BC), Babylon possibly started out as a small town in the backdrop of mighty cities like Ur, Uruk, and Nippur. However, by the time of the ascension of Hammurabi the Great (the sixth king of the Amorite dynasty) in 1792 BC, Babylon became the major capital of the city-state of ‘Babylonia’, known as Mât Akkadî or ‘the country of Akkad’ in contemporary Akkadian. The very term ‘Babylon’ is of Greek origin and it is possibly a rough translation of Babillu (or bav-ilim in Akkadian)– which in Semitic pertains to the conjunction of two words Bâb (gate) and ili (gods), thus suggesting the location of Babylon as the ‘gate of the Gods’.
On the Biblical side of affairs, Babylon is presented with a rather critical narrative. And arguably the most popular of these presentations pertains to the Book of Genesis, chapter 11, which deals with the infamous Tower of Babel – an architectural edifice that angers God, thus leading to the ‘curse’ of different languages of humanity, thereby mirroring the confusion and strife between cultures. Ironically, the rather captious Biblical emphasis on Babylon is what attracted historians and archaeologists in the first place to find this ‘fabled’ city – ultimately resulting in its discovery in 1899 by Robert Koldewey.
