Behn River
Encyclopedia
The Behn River or Behm River is a river
in the Kimberley region
of Western Australia
.
The river rises on the Northern Territory
and Western Australia
border
. The river then flows in a north easterly direction through Behn Gorge and discharges into Lake Argyle
on its way to join the Ord River
.
The rver has two tributaries
; Behm River and Bell Creek.
The river was named in 1879 by the first European to discover it, Andrew Forrest
, who was exploring the area at the time. It is recorded in his diary This river I called the Behn but it was later determined that the river was really named after Dr Ernst Behm
, the renowned German geographer. The name of maps produced after 1996 has been corrected.
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
in the Kimberley region
Regions of Western Australia
Regionalisations of Western Australia are systems by which Western Australia is divided into distinct geographic regions. The most commonly known regionalisation is the governmental division of the state into regions for economic development purposes, of which there are nine.Other regionalisations...
of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
The river rises on the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
and Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
border
Border
Borders define geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions, such as governments, sovereign states, federated states and other subnational entities. Some borders—such as a state's internal administrative borders, or inter-state borders within the Schengen Area—are open and...
. The river then flows in a north easterly direction through Behn Gorge and discharges into Lake Argyle
Lake Argyle
Lake Argyle is Australia's second largest artificial lake by volume. It is part of the Ord River Irrigation Scheme and is located near the East Kimberley town of Kununurra...
on its way to join the Ord River
Ord River
The Ord River is a 320-kilometre-long river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It was named in honour of Harry Ord, Governor of Western Australia from 1877 to 1880....
.
The rver has two tributaries
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
; Behm River and Bell Creek.
The river was named in 1879 by the first European to discover it, Andrew Forrest
Andrew Forrest
Andrew Forrest also known by his nickname "Twiggy", is a Western Australian mining entrepreneur, former chief executive officer, non-executive chairman, and the major shareholder of Fortescue Metals Group...
, who was exploring the area at the time. It is recorded in his diary This river I called the Behn but it was later determined that the river was really named after Dr Ernst Behm
Ernst Behm
Ernst Behm was a German geographer and statistician who was a native of Gotha.Behm studied medicine and sciences at the Universities of Jena, Berlin and Würzburg, and in 1856 began work as an editor at Petermanns Geographischen Mitteilungen in Gotha...
, the renowned German geographer. The name of maps produced after 1996 has been corrected.