He deduced that it later transformed into Akkadian Bāb-ili(m), and that the Sumerian name Kan-dig̃irak was a loan translation of the Semitic folk etymology, and not the original name. Gelb in 1955 argued that the original n or Babilla, of unknown meaning and origin, as there were other similarly named places in Sumer, and there are no other examples of Sumerian place-names being replaced with Akkadian translations. However, the 'gate of god' interpretation is increasingly viewed as a Semitic folk etymology to explain an unknown original non-Semitic placename. The final 𒆠 ( KI) is a determinative and it indicates that the previous signs are to be understood as a place name.Īrchibald Sayce, writing in the 1870s, postulated that the Semitic name was a loan-translation of the original Sumerian name. The sign 𒆍 (KA₂) is the logogram for 'gate', 𒀭 ( DIG̃IR) means 'god', and 𒊏 (RA) is a sign which phonetic value is used to represent the coda of the word dig̃ir (-r) followed by the genitive suffix -ak. This would correspond to the Sumerian phrase kan dig̃irak. The cuneiform spelling was 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 (KA₂.DIG̃IR.RA KI). The spelling Babylon is the french representation of Greek Babylṓn ( Βαβυλών), derived from the native ( Babylonian) Bābilim, meaning 'gate of the god(s)'. Babylon was inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage site and receives thousands of visitors each year, almost all of whom are Iraqis. The archeological site lies approximately 85 kilometers (53 mi) south of present-day Baghdad in Hillah, Babil Governorate, Iraq, and its boundaries have been based on the perimeter of the ancient outer city walls, an area of about 1054.3 hectares. Presently it is an archeological site and has only several thousand residents and a few villages within the archeological boundaries, although constructions have increased rapidly in recent years with some encroaching on the ruins.

It was the capital of the Babylonian empire and it was considered to be a center of commerce, art, and learning and is estimated to have been the largest early city in the world, perhaps the first to reach a population above 200,000. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols.īabylon was the ancient city where some of the most influential empires of the ancient world ruled.

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