In the new show from Europe 1, "Historically yours", Stéphane Bern examines the roots of an expression of everyday life.

Friday, the host returns in "The word of the end" on the origins of the formula "a tower of Babel".

>> It is arguably the most famous tower in history.

The famous Tower of Babel, one of the best-known myths in the Bible, has entered common parlance to the point of becoming a widespread expression, used to denote a place where confusion is total, where noise reigns supreme.

But what is the origin?

In the program Historically yours with Matthieu Noël, Stéphane Bern is interested in the roots of this expression.  

Let's go back a bit, barely 4,200 years ago.

The flood decided by God has been over a hundred years ago and the survivors, namely Noah and his descendants, are in Babylonia.

Blown up with pride, the men decide to build a tower whose top touches the sky and thus befriend the gods.

The goal is also to no longer be the victim of a second flood and thus challenge the divine: they want the building to be high enough so that everyone can be sheltered, thus rendering the divine sentence ineffective.

God will not let them do it, applying the adage "divide and reign better" before the hour.

He decides to make them speak a different language to each one, listening becomes blurred, and it is then impossible to understand each other: they will be forced to disperse all over the planet.

Traces also in the Koran and in southern Africa 

What is funny is that this biblical account finds these equivalents in the Koran, at the time of Moses, when the pharaoh asks Haman to build a tower called "babil".

In southern Africa too, there is a mythological story about how wicked men build to pursue the creator.

In Mexico, it is said that 7 giants who survived a flood built the pyramid of Cholula of which there are still vestiges: the gods, annoyed, launched fires from the sky making the tower forever unfinished.

Today, the expression "it is a real tower of babel" used to speak of a great confusion exists in Brazil, in Hungary, in the United States, while in Spain one says "una jaula de grillos" understand a cricket cage.

And do you know why ?

I know damn nothing, except that it makes noise!