Babylon (in Arabic: بابل; in Syriac: ܒܒܙܠ in Hebrew: בבל) is the Greek variant of Akkadian Babilu (bāb-ilû, meaning "Gateway of the god", translating Sumerian Kadingirra), an ancient city in Mesopotamia (modern Al Hillah, Iraq, see also: Iraq Maps), the ruins of which can be found in present-day Babil Province, about 50 miles (80 km) south of Baghdad. It was the "holy city" of Babylonia from around 2300 BC, and the seat of the Neo-Babylonian empire from 612 BC. In the Bible, the name appears as בבל (Babel - Genesis 10:10, 11:1, 11:9).In the Old Testament, the name appears as בבל (Babel), interpreted by Genesis 11:9 to mean "confusion", its Etymology from the verb balal, "to confuse".
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
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