<P> The term ivory tower originates in the Biblical Song of Solomon (7: 4) and was later used as an epithet for Mary . From the 19th century, it has been used to designate an environment of intellectual pursuit disconnected from the practical concerns of everyday life . In American English usage it is also used as shorthand for academia or the university . </P> <P> In the Judeo - Christian tradition, the term ivory tower is used as a symbol for noble purity . It originates with the Song of Solomon (7: 4) ("Your neck is like an ivory tower"; in the Hebrew Masoretic text, it is found in 7: 5) and was included in the epithets for Mary in the sixteenth century Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary ("tower of ivory", turris eburnea in Latin), though the title and image was in use long before that, since the 12th century Marian revival at least . It occasionally appears in art, especially in depictions of Mary in the hortus conclusus . Although the term is rarely used in the religious sense in modern times, it is credited with inspiring the modern meaning . </P>

Where did the term ivory tower come from
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