THE LIVING
AND THE DEAD
Sanskrit, an Indo-
European language,
flows across this 15th-
century Jain text. Many
languages in this vast
family share a common
ancestor. Some—such
as English—have
evolved and thrive, while
others, such as Hittite,
the language on the
royal seal (below), have
vanished.
JAIN TEXT, ROYAL SEAL: AKG/ALBUM
O
ne of the most popular stories in the Old Testament,
the Tower of Babel takes place during a time when “the
whole earth had one language and the same words”
(Genesis 11:1). The proud people of Shinar, identified
by scholars as Babylon, began building a city with a
tower so tall that it scrapes the heavens. Angered by their arrogance,
God takes away their common tongue, removing their ability to com-
municate. The workers abandon the tower and scatter across the land.
Their incomplete city becomes known as Babel “because there the
Lord confused the language of all the earth” (Genesis 11:9). Beneath
the primary lesson of humility, the Tower of Babel delivers crucial
insight into ancient people and a desire for a unified language.
