バビロニア文明２
BABYLONIAN 2
石川源晃著
紀元前525年（約二千六百年前）にペルシャ（今のイラン）の攻撃で新バビロニア王国
が滅亡しカルデア人は近隣の諸国に逃れて占い者になります。そのときに、多数のカルデア人がギリシャに逃れました。
その後、約二百年経過して、ギリシャマケドニアのアレクサンドロス大王がインド東征の帰路にペルシャ軍を破って
バビロニアを征服し、紀元前323年に、バビロニアで死去して、バビロニアという地方名も歴史から消滅します。
ローマ皇帝トラヤヌスが116年にバビロニアの名声にあこがれて訪問しましたが土と石の廃墟を見ただけで、
何も発見できなかったといいます。
The kingdom of New Babylonia has
closed the regime in 525 BC terminated. It was twenty six hundred years ago approximately when the invasion
of Persian army or the country of Iran of nowadays located has defeated the regime of New Babylonia.
Most Chaldeans have escaped from the country and scattered around the near by countries to live as the
specialists of fortune telling business engaged. Many of them took refuge in Greek. After elapse of some
two hundred years, the Alexandros Great has defeated the Persian troops in his return trip from India.
He died in Babylonia in 232 BC and the name of Babylonia disappeared from the history since after.
In the year of 116 AD, Trajan or Mercus Ulpinus Trjanus Roman Empire has visited Babylonia as he was
attracted by the name, but he found only a wrecked pile of soil and stones.
バビロニアの語源はシュメール語の神の門という言葉Ka-D-Ingir-Raをセム語に翻訳して、Bab-iliになり、
これが、ギリシャ語のバブローンになり、英語のバビロンに変化しました。都市バビロンの名前が歴史
にあらわれるのは、紀元前1900年ころ（約三千年前）ですが、アレクサンドロス大王が紀元前323年に
死去する紀元前323年までの、千六百年もの長い間、メソポタミアの重要な都市であり続けたのは、チグリス川
とユーフラテスア川の流れが狭まる地域に存在して、外敵の侵入を防いだことと、両川を通じて広い地域との
水路による交易が有利に作用したためと考えられます。古代以来、多数の運河が構築されたので、都市バビロンの
価値が急速に低下したので、メソポタミアの中枢としての力を都市バクダットに譲ったのでしょう。
The word BABYLONIA has come from the Sumerian word Ka-D-Ingir-Ra or the gate to god.
This was translated into Bab-ili in Semite. This became BABLON in Greek, or BABYLON in English.
It was 1900 BC or three thousand years ago approximately when the name of BABYLON was found
in the history described. This name has disappeared from the notes after 323 BC on the death of
Alexandros the Great in trip encountered. The major reason of continued prosperities of the town in
the long decade of about sixteen hundred years would be in its beneficial location that was stationed
in the narrowed ground space between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers located. This was favorable
either to protect the town from outside invasion of enemy or to utilize the water transportation for
the trade business prosperity gained. As many canals around Mesopotamia have been excavated
since ancient, those priorities of Babylon had been decreased rapidly and gradually the central power
of Mesopotamia was moved to the town Baghdad.
バビロニア王国が約三千八百年前に公布したハムラビ法典は石にきざまれたものが残っています。
刑法、訴訟手続き、民法、婚姻手続き、離婚手続き、相続、土地財産の所有権、抵当権の設定、商法、商業契約の詳細、などの282条の全文が一部後世の改ざん部分を除いて、完全に解読できます。メソポタミア各地から出土する粘土板記載の原始的な法典の中には、
ハムラビ法典より二百年前に公布されたもので破損が激しい約百数条の法典があり、内容がハムラビ法典と類似して
います。おそらくメソポタミアでは、ハムラビ法典の原型になる法律が約四千年前にはすでに一般に公布
されていたのでしょう。
エジプトや中国大陸の歴史が王様などの権力者が中心の文化であるのに比較して、
古代メソポタミアの文化水準は一般民衆の生活程度や知識水準が非常に高度に発達していたということを証明するものです。
The Code of Hammurabi published in Babylonia was engraved on the hard stone. As it was free from the
damage, we can now read it without difficulty except for partial falsify made by the later king. Complete form of 282 provisions of Code Hammurabi was
consisted from the criminal law, the criminal procedures, the civil law, registration of marriage, registration
of divorce, registration of succession of heir ship, the right of ownership of properties, registration of
mortgage, the commercial law, the procedure of commercial contract and else proclaimed. Another ancient
evidences of laws excavated from many other cities that were engraved on the damaged clay plates have
indicated the published ancient laws of one hundred or more provisions were already proclaimed.
Thus in Mesopotamia, about two hundred years earlier than the publication of the Code Hammurabi, or
in four thousand years ago, the written forms of laws in similar type of the Code Hammurabi were proclaimed.
In comparison to the history of either Egypt or China where the stories are mainly written on the life of kings,
the high cultured life of general public in ancient Mesopotamia should be marked evidenced.
ハムラビについては次ページ参照・More on HAMMURABI in the NEXT page.
