EXHIBIT OPENING: Fordham’s Babel: An Exploration of World Languages in the Special Collections

This exhibit, featuring centuries-old books and manuscripts, explores Western interest in languages. At first, we try to situate the story of Babel in a non-Western context, highlighting non-European languages. The exhibit then traces the Renaissance study of languages through the lens of the Bible and its translations and of ancient material relics, such as obelisks, coins, and other remains. We also showcase the tools scholars produced to study languages—for example, medieval and Renaissance-era grammar books and lexicons. The exhibit ends with a reflection on the impact of language study and classification on the formation of identities and prejudices in the Western world. How did early 20th-century Westerners classify languages and peoples? What does it say about their understanding of nationalities and cultures and their place within a society of their own?

The exhibit was curated by Gabriella DiMeglio, Miriam Krakowski, FCRH ‘27, and Magda Teter.