Seventy-two languages

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Seventy-two languages and peoples were, according to Christian medieval tradition, the result of the Tower of Babel and the ensuing Babylonian confusion of languages ( Gen 11: 1-9  EU ). The number goes back to the people table of Genesis ( Gen 10  EU ), which lists the descendants of Noah and classifies them geographically.

Noah's sons were called Sem ( sem “name”, “fame”), Ham ( xam “sunburn”) and Japhet (“spread”). The Semitic peoples were, according to tradition in the Near East , the Hamitic were in the south and the japhetitischen populated west, north and east of the known world. In the medieval tradition, the three sons of Noah were therefore also related to the three continents of Asia, Africa and Europe. Since every Christian nation from Armenia to Portugal to Iceland believed to recognize itself on this table of peoples, the table was often redesigned until modern times.

According to Christian doctrine, the confusion of languages ​​is said to have been overcome by the Pentecost miracle .

The Jewish tradition speaks of 70 languages.

In Soviet linguistics of the 20th century, Nikolai Jakowlewitsch Marr revived the theory of a Japhetite language branch as the “third ethnic element in the educational process of Mediterranean culture” through his stage theory , the so-called Japhetite language theory.

literature

  • Harald Specht: The Yahweh Code. On the trail of the holy number 72 , Leipzig 2011, ISBN 978-3-86268-375-8
  • Friedrich Braun: The indigenous population of Europe and the origin of the Germans ; Berlin, Stuttgart, Leipzig: W. Kohlhammer, 1922; Japhetitic Studies, Vol. 1
  • Nikolaj Jakovlevic Marr: The Japhetite Caucasus and the third ethnic element in the formation process of the Mediterranean culture ; Berlin, Stuttgart, Leipzig: W. Kohlhammer, 1923; Japhetite Studies on the Language and Culture of Eurasia, Vol. 2
  • Tasso Borbé (ed.): Critique of Marxist Language Theory N. Yes. Marr’s ; Kronberg (Ts.): Scriptor-Verlag, 1974; ISBN 3-589-20021-9 ; (Contains among others: Nikolaj Ja. Marr. The Japhetitic Theory )
  • Arno Borst : The Tower of Babel. History of opinions on the origin and diversity of languages ​​and peoples ; 4 volumes; Stuttgart: Hiersemann, 1957–1963; Munich: dtv, 1995; ISBN 3-423-59028-9

See also