Babylonia
/ˌbæbɪˈloʊniə/noun
An ancient region and empire in Mesopotamia centered on the city of Babylon.
Did you know?The name ultimately comes from Akkadian Bāb-ilim, meaning “Gate of the God,” a title that later passed through Greek and Latin into the Biblical image of Babylon as a place of grandeur and doom.
Etymological Timeline
Akkadian period
Akkadian
Bāb-ilim / Bāb-ilāni
““Gate of the god” or “gate of the gods,” the Mesopotamian name behind Babylon.”
Ancient Hebrew
Hebrew
Bāḇel
“Babylon, later associated in the Bible with confusion and exile.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
Babylṓn
“Babylon, the famous Mesopotamian city and empire.”
Latin
Latin
Babylōnia
“Babylonia, the region or empire of Babylon.”
Modern English
English
Babylonia
“The ancient Mesopotamian region and empire centered on Babylon.”