Anachronisms in the Book of Mormon

There are a number of words and phrases in the Book of Mormon that are anachronistic—their existence in the text of the Book of Mormon is at odds with known linguistic patterns, archaeological findings, or known historical events.

Each of the anachronisms is a word, phrase, artifact, or other concept that critics, historians, archaeologists, or linguists believe did not exist in the Americas during the time period in which the Book of Mormon claims to have been written.

Mormon scholars and apologists respond to the anachronisms in several ways.

The list below summarizes the most prominent anachronisms, as well as perspectives of Mormon scholars and common apologetic rebuttals.

According to Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon was originally engraved on golden plates, which he received in 1827 from an angel named Moroni, whom Smith identified as a resurrected inhabitant of the American continent. Smith claimed to translate the original text of the plates into English; the book says that the text was written on the plates in "Reformed Egyptian". The Book of Mormon was published in 1830.

The Book of Mormon is said to have taken place somewhere in the Americas from c. 2500 BC to 400 AD, thus placing its events within the pre-Columbian era.

Critics claim that the book's origin lies firmly in the 19th century and that Smith created it with the resources available to him, including the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible.

Unlike the Bible, no manuscripts in the supposed original language of the Book of Mormon are known to exist. No Reformed Egyptian manuscripts or plates have ever been excavated by archaeologists. Critics and supporters disagree as to whether other archaeological findings support or disprove the historicity of the Book of Mormon. Some Mormon archaeologists and researchers claim various archaeological findings such as place names, and ruins of the Inca, Maya, Olmec, and other ancient American and Old World civilizations as giving credence to the Book of Mormon record.

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