We have been asked this question hundreds of times and it is also a hot topic for people starting out in the world of translation and interpretation. What is the origin of translation? Who were the first professional translators? How and why did the need for professional translators arise? After lots of research, we have the answer. Would you like to hear it? Keep reading and we will explain everything.
The myth of the Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel is one of the oldest myths. It was told in the Bible, in the Book of Genesis. This story has been interpreted and reinterpreted over the centuries, giving it various different readings and meanings.
According to the bible, after the Great Flood, Noah’s descendants came together to build a great tower that would reach up to the heavens. Their goal was to make a name for themselves and avoid being scattered over the face of the earth. Seeing the audacity of the men, God decided to disrupt the work by confusing their languages. That meant the builders could no longer understand each other and the construction of the tower came to an abrupt halt.
The first need for translation
The biblical story of the Tower of Babel paints a picture of a world with just one language before the tower was constructed. Everyone spoke the same language, which made communication and collaboration easier. However, when God confused the languages as a punishment for their pride, a language barrier was created that fragmented humanity.
The confusion about languages at the Tower of Babel represented a turning point in the history of human communication. Suddenly, people could no longer understand each other. This fragmentation in languages gave rise to the need to find ways to communicate across different languages.
In turn, the number of different languages produced as a result of the Tower of Babel made translation an urgent need. Translation became the bridge connecting the communities who now spoke different languages, allowing for the exchange of ideas, knowledge and cultures.
What about the Rosetta Stone?
The story of the Tower of Babel is nothing more than a myth about the origin of translation, so you may be wondering about the real origin. The truth is that the history of this profession is closely linked to Egypt and the famous Rosetta Stone.
This stone was inscribed with information from a decree praising the pharaoh Ptolemy V, on the first anniversary of his reign in 196 BC. The remarkable thing about this piece, which is more than one metre tall and weighs almost 800kg, is that the decree was written in three different languages: Egyptian hieroglyphics, demotic script, and Greek.
The Rosetta Stone became a key milestone in the history of translation, since it allowed scholars to finally decipher the meaning of hieroglyphics, whose mystery had remained locked until the stone was discovery.
Few people know that one of the predecessors, Ptolemy Philadelphus, ordered the translation of the Five Books of Moses as long ago as the 3rd century BC. According to legend, this Egyptian pharaoh invited 72 wise men from Judea, experts in Hebrew and Greek, to translate the Five Books of Moses into Greek. As a result, the Jews in Alexandria, who had mostly forgotten their original language, could understand them and use them in their worship. Later, other books from the Old Testament were also translated and together these translations became known as the Alexandrian, Septuagint, or 70 version.
Did you know all of this? Well, now you know a little more about the origin of translation!
