Different Versions of Shabbat Kiddush in Jewish History

Hello, As far as I understand, there are different versions of the Friday evening Kiddush prayer, which follow the traditions of Sephardim, Ashkenazim, Spaniards, and Yemenites. There might be other versions, but these are the ones I've heard about. I would like to know the reason for the different versions and what it means. Is there a different interpretation for each version? Where can one find interpretations of the different versions? I assume it might be related to the generation of the flood or the Babylonian exile, the whole issue of different versions that simply rolled down from generation to generation and remained with us until today, and there was never a situation where the prayer was truly one without differences. Until recently, I was sure that the entire Tanakh is written the same. And can the Friday Kiddush prayer be found in the Tanakh itself or only in the Siddur? And if so, where did the Siddur come from, in what sense and why is it separate from the Tanakh, when was it written, etc.

Hello,

Your question is complex and very important.

But first, let's clarify the history. 

From the creation of the world, there were about 2000 years during which the people of Israel did not exist, and of course, the Torah had not yet been given to the world.

After about 2000 years, the formation of the people of Israel began, with the birth of Abraham, his son Isaac, and his grandson Jacob, who are the patriarchs of the nation. 

From Jacob's twelve sons, a nation called 'the people of Israel' was formed.

This nation was in exile in Egypt, and after leaving there [about 3345 years ago], they received the Ten Commandments from God at Mount Sinai.

And after 40 years, with the entry of the children of Israel into the Land of Israel, the writing of the Torah was completed, which at this stage included the five books, generally called 'Torah'. 

During the approximately 850 years that followed, the people of Israel were in the Land of Israel, and then 70 years in the Babylonian exile.

During this period, there were prophets in Israel who wrote in the name of God the books of the 'Prophets' and the 'Writings'. 

These books joined the Written Torah - the Torah written in the name of God in the holy books. All these are collectively called 'Tanakh' - an acronym for: Torah, Prophets, Writings. 

After the Babylonian exile, part of the people of Israel returned to the Land of Israel.

Until this stage, there was no uniform text for prayer; each person prayed from their feelings, needs, and desires. 

After returning from the Babylonian exile, the sages of that generation saw that the people no longer knew how to ask properly, as the returnees were no longer proficient in the holy language. They stood and established a text for prayer.

The sages of that generation were called 'the Great Assembly', which included one hundred and twenty outstanding sages, among them the last prophets, and they established a precise and suitable text for each prayer. 

Since then, the people of Israel have gone through many exiles, during which many communities were formed that were sometimes isolated for hundreds of years from other communities, resulting in various changes in the texts of blessings and prayers. 

Amazingly, due to the incredible diligence of Jews everywhere in transmitting tradition in absolute completeness, no changes occurred in the books of the Tanakh!!

[Except for a few places with spelling changes, which have no impact on meanings, and even these can be counted on the fingers of one hand].

However, in the texts of prayers and blessings, whose text was established by the sages, different versions arose. Still, the order of prayers, their timing, and their meaning did not change at all. Only changes in wording and additions of words occurred in several prayers. 

Another significant process occurred about 400 years ago, when the spread of the Zohar and Kabbalistic teachings began, resulting in some changes in the text that was accepted until that generation. 

The Hasidic movement, which began about 250 years ago, adopted many changes in the prayer text that align with Kabbalistic teachings.

Now to your questions:

A. The reason for the different versions among communities is mostly due to the various exiles. But also due to adaptation to Kabbalistic teachings. 

B. There are Siddurs with printed interpretations, and you can purchase the version that suits you, with interpretation. As I wrote, the interpretation is almost the same in all versions; the differences are in order and wording. 

C. Of course, there is no connection to the generation of the flood - in that generation, there was no Judaism yet. Nor to the Babylonian exile - in that generation, there was no uniform text for prayer and blessings. 

D. As I wrote, there are no differences in the text of the Tanakh. Only in the prayer text, which is much later, are there differences in versions. 

Rambam

Laws of Prayer (Chapter 1, Halacha 3):
If one is accustomed, he increases supplication and request, and if he is of slow speech, he speaks according to his ability and at any time he wishes, and likewise the number of prayers is according to each one's ability, some pray once a day, and some pray many times, and all pray facing the Temple wherever they may be, and so it was always from Moses our teacher until Ezra.
(same, Halacha 4):
When Israel was exiled in the days of Nebuchadnezzar the wicked, they mingled with Persia and Greece and other nations, and they had children in the lands of the nations, and their language was confused, and the language of each one was mixed from many languages, and when he spoke, he could not speak fully in one language but only with errors, as it is said: "And their children spoke half in the language of Ashdod, etc." and they did not know how to speak Jewish, like the language of each nation, and because of this, when one of them prayed, his tongue could not express his desires or praise the Holy One, blessed be He, in the holy language until he mixed with it other languages, and when Ezra and his court saw this, they stood and established for them eighteen blessings in order, three first are praise to God, three last are thanksgiving, and the middle ones contain requests for all things that are like the fathers for all the needs of each person and for the needs of the public, so that they would be arranged in the mouths of all and they would learn them, and the prayer of these slow of speech would be a complete prayer like the prayer of those who possess a pure language, and because of this, they established all the blessings and prayers arranged in the mouths of all Israel so that the content of each blessing would be arranged in the mouth of the slow of speech.