A native or inhabitant of ancient Babylon; sometimes also used to mean a person who follows Babylonian customs or beliefs.
From 'Babylon' plus '-ite' (from Greek '-ites'), a suffix used to denote inhabitants or followers. This pattern created words like 'Israelite,' 'Canaanite,' and 'Hittite' for ancient peoples.
The '-ite' suffix was especially popular among ancient historians because it clearly marked nationality and group identity—it's how Greek and Roman writers categorized everyone around them, and it stuck around for 2,000 years!
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