Bible: How it got its name

Few books had its range cultural influence over the last two millennia like the Bible. But have you ever wondered where its name comes from? In fact, there is more than one version of the Bible, with Judaism dating back to before Christ, according to grunge.com, and the word “Bible” itself has its roots in an even older era. .Bible – How it got its name

THE Holy BibleSo, it’s not really a book at all – at least not as most people think today. On the contrary, it is more of an anthology of about 27 books in the New Testament, written from about 50 AD. until 100 AD According to the BBC, the Bible is divided into two parts: the Gospels and the Letters, each conveying the teachings of Christ and providing guidance to the leaders of the early Christian church.

The striking fact, however, about the word “Bible” is that it has nothing to do with the time in which Christ lived or even with Christianity.

The word “Bible” is Latin

The story of how the Bible got its name, then, begins in the Mediterranean port of Gebal, known to the ancient Greeks as Byblos. The Greek name for the “papyrus” was “byblos” and at that time Gebal was a major exporter of the material. Specifically, the papyrus was used to create writing material and ancient scrolls, according to Britannica. According to World History, the Phoenician alphabet – which gave birth to many modern alphabets, including English – also came from the Bible. Over time, then, the word “byblos” became “biblia” in Latin and Greek “books”.

For this reason, when the first editions of the Bible appeared, they were often referred to as “biblia sacra” (“holy book”) or “biblia ta hagia” (“books of wisdom”). According to Compass News, we continue to use a variation of these names when referring to the Bible to this day. Nevertheless, the popularity and influence of one of the most widely read books in English it is unlikely to change soon although the word “Bible” comes long before the time of Christ.