The Greek form of Hebrew Babel, referring to the great Mesopotamian city on the Euphrates. In Matthew's genealogy it marks the defining trauma of Israel's history: 'the deportation to Babylon' appears as a structural hinge (Matt 1:11-12, 17). Stephen recalls it as the place of Israel's idolatrous exile (Acts 7:43). In Revelation, Babylon becomes a symbolic cipher — most likely for Rome — announced as fallen with dramatic repetition (Rev 14:8; 18:2), judged with consuming fire (Rev 16:19; 18:10, 21), and branded 'Babylon the Great, mother of prostitutes' (Rev 17:5). First Peter 5:13 sends greetings from 'she who is in Babylon,' probably also a cryptic reference to Rome. French 'Babylone' and Spanish 'Babilonia' reflect the name's universal recognition.