Ur Kasdim
tower of babel???
Basically, this started as just a deep dive into the Chaldeans, but quickly look a left turn! Cross referencing translations and original Hebrew word structure, I noticed “Chaldeans” was used in place of “fortune tellers” in the book of Daniel. We know the Chaldeans to be Babylonians, or at least living in Babylon, and that varies with the specific groups/intent/and story they’re in.
The first mention of them is Genesis:
Genesis 11:28 OJV
And Haran died before his av Terach in the land of his birth, in Ur Kasdim.
Genesis 11:28 KJV
And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees.
UR
Meaning: Flame, Light
Etymology: From the verb אור ('or), to be or give light; to shine.
Ur | The amazing name Ur: meaning and etymology (abarim-publications.com)
KASDIM
Meaning: Unclear but perhaps Descendants of Chesed
Etymology: From the name Chesed.
HERE COMES THAT LEFT TURN!
Genesis 11: 31
31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.
NOW LET’S GET WEIRD!!!
Genesis 11: 1-2
11 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.
Coincidentally, what happens to be right there where everything got funky???
Ziggurat of Ur
Genesis 11:3 (Tower of Babel)
And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.
from Wikipedia:
The remains of the ziggurat consist of a three-layered solid mass of mud brick faced with burnt bricks set in bitumen. The lowest layer corresponds to the original construction of Ur-Nammu, while the two upper layers are part of the Neo-Babylonian restorations.
