Araks River
Encyclopedia
The Aras is a river located in and along the countries of Turkey
, Armenia
, Azerbaijan
, and Iran
. Its total length is 1072 kilometres (666.1 mi). Given its length and a basin that covers an area of 102,000 km², it is one of the largest rivers of the Caucasus
.
, Turkey. It meets with the Akhurian River
southeast of Digor, flows along the Turkish-Armenian border, and then near a corridor that connects Turkey to Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan exclave. It then flows along the Iranian-Azerbaijan and the Iranian-Armenian border. The river then flows along the border between Iran and the main territory of the Azerbaijan to meet with the Kura River
at the village of Sabirabad. It then directly flows into the Caspian Sea
. About 101,937 km² of the Araz River basin is located in Azerbaijan.
The Zangmar
, Sariso, Ghotour River
, Hajilar River, Kalibar River, Ilghena River, Darreh River and Balha River are the major tributaries of the Aras from the south (right). In Turkey the Ghareso river flows in on the left side. The Akhurian
, Metsamor
, Hrazdan
, Azat
, Vedi, Arpa
, Vorotan, Voghdji
and Megri rivers flow in from the Armenian north side (left). The Khachin River, Okhchi River, Kuri River and Kandlan River flow in from the Azerbaijan north side (left).
tradition, the river is named after Arast, a great-grandson of the legendary Armenian patriarch Haik
. See Erasx for the etymology. The name was later Hellenized
to Araxes and was applied to the Kura-Araxes culture
, a prehistoric people which flourished in the valleys of the Kura and Aras. But many times it is the Volga River
which is called Araxes especially in Herodotus
' History
1.202. The river is also mentioned in the last chapter of the Aeneid VIII by Virgil, as "angry at the bridge", since the Romans built a bridge over it,so that it is thereby conquered. By some, the river Aras has been associated with the otherwise unidentified Gihon
and Pishon
rivers mentioned in the second chapter of the Bible.
In modern history, the Aras gained significance as a geographic political boundary. Under the terms of the Treaty of Gulistan and the Treaty of Turkmenchay
, the river was chosen as the border limit between the Russian
and Persian Empires. Iran and the Soviet Union
later built the Aras Dam
on the Aras in the Poldasht
area creating the Aras Reservoir.
During the cold war some Iranian communists escaped to USSR using this river. Also Samad Behrangi
, an Iranian author of children books, drowned in the River Aras.
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
, Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
, and Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. Its total length is 1072 kilometres (666.1 mi). Given its length and a basin that covers an area of 102,000 km², it is one of the largest rivers of the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
.
Etymology
See Ἀράξης for the origin of the Greek name, and Erasx for the origin of the Armenian name.Description
The Aras River rises near ErzurumErzurum
Erzurum is a city in Turkey. It is the largest city, the capital of Erzurum Province. The city is situated 1757 meters above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 361,235 in the 2000 census. .Erzurum, known as "The Rock" in NATO code, served as NATO's southeastern-most air force post during the...
, Turkey. It meets with the Akhurian River
Akhurian River
The Akhurian, Akhuriyan, Akhuryan or Akhouryan is a river in the South Caucasus. It originates in Armenia and flows from Lake Tseli south, along the border with Turkey, forming part of the geographic border between the two states, until it flows into the Aras River as a left tributary near Bagaran...
southeast of Digor, flows along the Turkish-Armenian border, and then near a corridor that connects Turkey to Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan exclave. It then flows along the Iranian-Azerbaijan and the Iranian-Armenian border. The river then flows along the border between Iran and the main territory of the Azerbaijan to meet with the Kura River
Kura River
Kura is a river, also known from the Greek as the Cyrus in the Caucasus Mountains. Starting in north-eastern Turkey, it flows through Turkey to Georgia, then to Azerbaijan, where it receives the Aras River as a right tributary, and enters the Caspian Sea...
at the village of Sabirabad. It then directly flows into the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
. About 101,937 km² of the Araz River basin is located in Azerbaijan.
The Zangmar
Zangmar River
The Zangmar River is a river in Maku Shahrestan, West Azarbaijan Province, Iran. It originates in the mountains above Maku, Iran along the Turkish-Iranian border, not far from Mount Ararat and flows south and east into the Araxes at the town of Pol Dasht....
, Sariso, Ghotour River
Ghotour
Ghotour Bridge is a railway bridge in Khoy County, West Azarbaijan Province, Iran, over the Ghotour River. It is an arch bridge, was completed in 1970, and has a length of 442.9 m. with the largest span being 223.1 m. ....
, Hajilar River, Kalibar River, Ilghena River, Darreh River and Balha River are the major tributaries of the Aras from the south (right). In Turkey the Ghareso river flows in on the left side. The Akhurian
Akhurian River
The Akhurian, Akhuriyan, Akhuryan or Akhouryan is a river in the South Caucasus. It originates in Armenia and flows from Lake Tseli south, along the border with Turkey, forming part of the geographic border between the two states, until it flows into the Aras River as a left tributary near Bagaran...
, Metsamor
Metsamor
Metsamor is a city in the Armavir Province of Armenia. Armenia's Nuclear Power Plant called Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant is located in this city. Metsamor was built in 1979 to house workers from the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant. The power plant was closed in 1989 after an earthquake prompted...
, Hrazdan
Hrazdan River
The Hrazdan is a major river of Armenia. It starts at the northwest extremity of Lake Sevan and flows south through the Kotayk marz and Armenia's capital, Yerevan. It then joins the Aras River along the border with Turkey. A Hydro-electric plant is located on the Hrazdan river...
, Azat
Azat River
The Azat is a river in the Kotayk Province of Armenia. Its source is on the western slope of the Geghama mountains. It flows through Garni, Lanjazat and Arevshat. It flows into the Aras near Artashat.-See also:*Rivers and lakes in Armenia...
, Vedi, Arpa
Arpa River
The Arpa is a river that flows through Armenia and Azerbaijan's Nakhichevan exclave. It originates in the Vayots Dzor province of Armenia and serves as a left tributary of the Aras River...
, Vorotan, Voghdji
Voghdji River
Voghdji is a river on the south slopes of the Lesser Caucasus range, and is a left tributary of Araks River. It flows over the territory of Armenia and Azerbaijan....
and Megri rivers flow in from the Armenian north side (left). The Khachin River, Okhchi River, Kuri River and Kandlan River flow in from the Azerbaijan north side (left).
History
In ArmenianArmenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
tradition, the river is named after Arast, a great-grandson of the legendary Armenian patriarch Haik
Haik
Hayk Nahapet is the legendary patriarch and founder of the Armenian nation. His story is told in the History of Armenia attributed to the Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi .- Etymology :...
. See Erasx for the etymology. The name was later Hellenized
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
to Araxes and was applied to the Kura-Araxes culture
Kura-Araxes culture
The Kura-Araxes culture or the Early trans-Caucasian culture, was a civilization that existed from 3400 BC until about 2000 BC. The earliest evidence for this culture is found on the Ararat plain; thence it spread to Georgia by 3000 BC, and during the next millennium it proceeded westward to the...
, a prehistoric people which flourished in the valleys of the Kura and Aras. But many times it is the Volga River
Volga River
The Volga is the largest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. It flows through central Russia, and is widely viewed as the national river of Russia. Out of the twenty largest cities of Russia, eleven, including the capital Moscow, are situated in the Volga's drainage...
which is called Araxes especially in Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
' History
Histories (Herodotus)
The Histories of Herodotus is considered one of the seminal works of history in Western literature. Written from the 450s to the 420s BC in the Ionic dialect of classical Greek, The Histories serves as a record of the ancient traditions, politics, geography, and clashes of various cultures that...
1.202. The river is also mentioned in the last chapter of the Aeneid VIII by Virgil, as "angry at the bridge", since the Romans built a bridge over it,so that it is thereby conquered. By some, the river Aras has been associated with the otherwise unidentified Gihon
Gihon
Gihon is the name of the second river mentioned in the second chapter of the biblical Book of Genesis. The Gihon is mentioned as one of four rivers issuing out of the Garden of Eden that branched from a single river within the garden. The name may be interpreted as "Bursting Forth, Gushing"...
and Pishon
Pishon
The Pishon is one of four rivers mentioned in the Biblical Genesis. In that passage, these rivers are described as arising within the Garden of Eden...
rivers mentioned in the second chapter of the Bible.
In modern history, the Aras gained significance as a geographic political boundary. Under the terms of the Treaty of Gulistan and the Treaty of Turkmenchay
Treaty of Turkmenchay
The Treaty of Turkmenchay was a treaty negotiated in Turkmenchay by which the Qajar Empire recognized Russian suzerainty over the Erivan khanate, the Nakhchivan khanate, and the remainder of the Talysh khanate, establishing the Aras River as the common boundary between the empires, after its...
, the river was chosen as the border limit between the Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and Persian Empires. Iran and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
later built the Aras Dam
Aras Dam
The Aras Dam is an embankment dam on the Aras River along the border of Iran and Azerbaijan. It is located downstream of Poldasht in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran and Nakhchivan City in Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, Azerbaijan...
on the Aras in the Poldasht
Poldasht
Poldasht is a city in and the capital of Poldasht County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 8,584, in 2,205 families. The city lies on the western bank of the Aras River....
area creating the Aras Reservoir.
During the cold war some Iranian communists escaped to USSR using this river. Also Samad Behrangi
Samad Behrangi
Samad Behrangi was an Iranian teacher, social critic, folklorist, translator, and short story writer of Azeri extraction. He is famous for his children's book, The Little Black Fish.-Life:He was born in Tabriz to a lower-class Azerbaijani family...
, an Iranian author of children books, drowned in the River Aras.
See also
- Rivers and lakes in ArmeniaRivers and lakes in ArmeniaThe Rivers and lakes in Armenia are mainly powered by fresh water. Throughout history Armenia has been called Nairi by the Assyrians meaning the "Land of the lakes and rivers". The Armenia is home to many rivers and lakes....
- Rivers and lakes in AzerbaijanRivers and lakes in AzerbaijanThe water bodies of Azerbaijan were formed over a long geological timeframe and changed significantly throughout that period. This is particularly evidenced by remnants of ancient rivers found throughout the country. The country's water systems are continually changing under the influence of...
- Geography of TurkeyGeography of TurkeyTurkey is situated in Anatolia and the Balkans, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria. The geographic coordinates of the country lie at:...
- Geography of ArmeniaGeography of ArmeniaArmenia is a landlocked country in the South Caucasus region, between the Black and Caspian Seas, bordered on the north and east by Georgia and Azerbaijan and on the south and west by Iran and Turkey....
- Geography of IranGeography of IranIran is located in southwest Asia and borders the Gulf of Oman, Persian Gulf, and Caspian Sea.Its mountains have helped to shape both the political and the economic history of the country for several centuries. The mountains enclose several broad basins, or plateaus, on which major agricultural and...
- Geography of AzerbaijanGeography of AzerbaijanAzerbaijan is situated in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Three physical features dominate Azerbaijan: the Caspian Sea, whose shoreline forms a natural boundary to the east; the Greater Caucasus mountain range to the north; and the extensive flatlands at the country's center...
- Nature of AzerbaijanNature of AzerbaijanThe environment of Azerbaijan includes a wide diversity of climates, animals, plants, and habitats.-National protection:Due to the tapping of oil reserves in the early 20th century, Azerbaijan has had sufficient resources to develop an industrial sector, which in turn led to a significant increase...