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Euphrates

For the song "River Euphrates" by the Pixies, see Surfer Rosa.


Euphrates
Enlarge picture
Map of the Tigris-Euphrates Watershed
Map of the Tigris-Euphrates Watershed
OriginEastern Turkey
MouthShatt al Arab
Basin countriesTurkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran
Length2,800 km
Source elevation4,500 m
Avg. discharge818 m³/s
Basin area765,831 km²


The Euphrates (IPA: /juːˈfreɪtiːz/) (Turkish: Fırat, Assyrian: ܦܪܬ) is the western of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (the other being the Tigris) which flows from Anatolia, Turkey.

Etymology

The name Euphrates was thought to have been originated from old meaning "good", and peretu, meaning "ford")[1].

The Sumerian and Akkadian names for the Euphrates are Buranun and Pu-rat-tu, respectively, Buranun being attested in an inscription associated with king Gudea (22nd century BC). It seems thus that later names arose by popular etymology based on the Sumerian/Akkadian name of the river.

Grammatically the word Euphrates appears to be the combination of two Greek words i.e. Τhe adverb "Εύ" pronounced "Eff or Eph" meaning "well , easily, good" and the noun "ροὐς" pronounced "rous, roos " meaning "flow, current" , derived from the verb "ρἐω" pronounced "rhéo , ré..oh" meaning "to flow" . The result of the two words combined is "Euph + ràtes" = Euphrates . In Greek "Ευφράτης" means " "easily flowing, gently flowing, flowing leisurely, well flowing". This is in contrast to the River Tigris situated to the east of Euphrates meaning Tiger which flows fast with force like a Tiger . As far as the Persian pronunciation is concerned "Ferat" it is similar to the Greek verb "φέρω" pronounced "Féro, fé..ro , phéro" which means "carry, bring forward" . The two words "Eu" meaning "gently" and "Féro" in this case the Persian "Ferat" meaning "carry or bring forward make up the name of Euphrates . Logically the first explanation "Gently flowing" appears to be the nearest correct . PS. "rous" . The pronunciation of "ou" in Greek is like "oo" in the words "look", book etc .

LanguageName for Euphrates
AkkadianPu-rat-tu
Arabicالفرات Al-Furāt
Aramaicܦܪܬ Prâth, Frot
ArmenianԵփրատ Yeṗrat
GreekΕυφράτης Euphrátēs
Hebrewפְּרָת Pĕrāth
Kurdishفرهات Firhat, Ferhat
Persianفرات Ferat
SumerianBuranun
TurkishFırat

Course of the Euphrates

Main article: List of cities and towns on the Euphrates River
The river is approximately 2,781 kilometers (1,730 miles) long. It is formed by the union of two branches, the Kara (the western Euphrates), which rises in the Armenian highlands of today's eastern Turkey north of Erzurum and the Murat (the eastern Euphrates), which issues from an area southwest of Mount Ararat, north of Lake Van. The upper reaches of the Euphrates flow through steep canyons and gorges, southeast across Syria, and through Iraq. The Khabur and the Balikh River join the Euphrates in eastern Syria.

Enlarge picture
A man and woman make their way up the Shatt-al-Arab in Basra, Iraq.


Both rivers have their origins in Turkey. Downstream, through its whole length, the Euphrates receives no further water flow. North of Basra, in southern Iraq, the river merges with the Tigris to form the Shatt al-Arab, this in turn empties into the Persian Gulf.

The river used to divide into many channels at Basra, forming an extensive marshland, but the marshes were largely drained by the Saddam Hussein government in the 1990s as a means of driving out the rebellious Marsh Arabs. Since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the drainage policy has been reversed, but it remains to be seen whether the marshes will recover.

The Euphrates is only navigable by very shallow-draft boats, which can reach as far as the Iraqi city of Hit, located 1,930 kilometers (1,200 miles) upstream and which is only 53 meters (58 yards) above sea level. Above Hit, however, shoals and rapids make the river commercially unnavigable. Its annual inundation, caused by snowmelt in the mountains of northeastern Turkey, has been partly checked by new dams and reservoirs in the upper reaches. A 885 kilometer (550-mile) canal links the Euphrates to the Tigris to serve as a route for river barges.

Enlarge picture
The Euphrates River near Ar Raqqah, Syria.


Euphrates in the Bible

A river named Perath (Hebrew for Euphrates) is one of the four rivers that flow from the Garden of Eden according to Genesis 2:14. This Hebrew word, derived from either the word "stream" or "to break forth", has been translated as Euphrates[2]. It is the fourth river, after the Pishon, the Gihon, and the Tigris, (Hebrew name is Hiddekel) to form from the river flowing out of the garden. The river of the same name marked one of the boundaries of the land promised by God to Abraham and his descendants (Isaac, Jacob, etc). In the Hebrew Bible, it is often referred to simply as "The River" (ha-nahar). (Genesis 15:18).

Islamic prophecies

In Islam, some of the hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad, suggest that the Euphrates will dry up, revealing unknown treasures that will be the cause of strife and war.

Euphrates in history

The Euphrates provided the water that led to the first flowering of civilization in Sumer, dating from about the 4th millennium BC. Many important ancient cities were located on or near the riverside, including Mari, Sippar, Nippur, Shuruppak, Uruk, Ur and Eridu. The river valley formed the heartlands of the later empires of Babylonia and Assyria. For several centuries, the river formed the eastern limit of effective Egyptian and Roman control and western regions of the Persian Empire. Also, the Battle of Karbala occurred at the banks of Euphrates river, where Imam Hussain, along with his family and friends, were martyred.

Controversial issues

As with the Tigris there is much controversy over rights and use of the river. The Southeastern Anatolia Project in Turkey involves the construction of 22 dams and 19 power plants by 2005, the biggest development project ever undertaken by Turkey. The first of the dams was completed in 1990. Southeast Turkey is still struggling economically, adding fuel to the discontent expressed by Turkey's Kurdish minority centered there. The Turkish authorities hope that the project will provide a boost to the region's economy, but domestic and foreign critics have disputed its benefits as well as attacking the social and environmental costs of the scheme.

In Syria the Tabaqah Dam (completed in 1973 and sometimes known simply as the Euphrates Dam) forms a reservoir, Lake Assad that is used for irrigating cotton. Syria has dammed its two tributaries and is in the process of constructing another dam. Iraq has seven dams in operation, but water control lost priority during Saddam Hussein's regime. Since the collapse of Ba'ath Iraq in 2003, water use has come once again to the fore. The scarcity of water in the Middle East leaves Iraq in constant fear that Syria and Turkey will use up most of the water before it reaches Iraq. As it is, irrigation in southern Iraq leaves little water to join the Tigris at the Shatt-al-Arab.

See also

External links

Origin Eastern Turkey
Mouth Shatt al-Arab
Basin countries Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran
Length 1.900 km (1.180 mi)

The Tigris is the eastern member of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, along with the Euphrates, which flows from
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Headstream is the origin of water flow that initiates the subject watercourse. It is the start of the river or stream.

The source of a river or stream may be a lake, a marsh, a spring, glacier, or a collection of headwaters.
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Motto
Yurtta Sulh, Cihanda Sulh
Peace at Home, Peace in the World
Anthem
İstiklâl Marşı
The Anthem of Independence
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Origin Tigris, Euphrates and Karun
Mouth Persian Gulf
Basin countries Iran, Iraq
Length  km ( mi)

Mouth elevation 0
Avg.
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A drainage basin is a region of land where water from rain or snow melt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, dam, estuary, wetland, sea or ocean. The drainage basin includes both the streams and rivers that convey the water as well as the land surfaces from
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Motto
Yurtta Sulh, Cihanda Sulh
Peace at Home, Peace in the World
Anthem
İstiklâl Marşı
The Anthem of Independence
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Motto
الله أكبر    (Arabic)
"Allahu Akbar"   (transliteration)
"God is the Greatest"
Anthem

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Anthem
Homat el Diyar
Guardians of the Land


Capital
(and largest city) Damascus

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Anthem
Sorūd-e Mellī-e Īrān ²


Capital
(and largest city) Tehran

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Headstream is the origin of water flow that initiates the subject watercourse. It is the start of the river or stream.

The source of a river or stream may be a lake, a marsh, a spring, glacier, or a collection of headwaters.
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In hydrology, the discharge of a river is the volume of water transported by it in a certain amount of time. The unit used is usually m³/s (cubic meters per second, or cumecs). For example, the average discharge of the Rhine river is 2200 m³/s.
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IPA for English The
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Turkish (Türkçe, ] (help info )
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Assyrian Neo-Aramaic}}}
Language codes
ISO 639-1: none
ISO 639-2: syr
ISO 639-3: aii

Assyrian Neo-Aramaic is a modern Eastern Aramaic or Syriac language.
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Mesopotamia was a cradle of civilization geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq. Sumer in southern Mesopotamia is commonly regarded as the world's earliest civilization.
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Origin Eastern Turkey
Mouth Shatt al-Arab
Basin countries Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran
Length 1.900 km (1.180 mi)

The Tigris is the eastern member of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, along with the Euphrates, which flows from
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This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.
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Motto
Yurtta Sulh, Cihanda Sulh
Peace at Home, Peace in the World
Anthem
İstiklâl Marşı
The Anthem of Independence
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Sumerian ( EME.GIR15
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Akkadian}}} 
Writing system: Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform 
Official status
Official language of: initially Akkad (central Mesopotamia); lingua franca of the Middle East and Egypt in the late Bronze and early Iron Ages.
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Gudea was a ruler (ensi) of the city of Lagash in Southern Mesopotamia who ruled ca. 2144 - 2124 BC. He probably did not come from the city, but had married Ninalla, daughter of the ruler Urbaba (2164 - 2144 BC) of Lagash, thus gaining entrance to the royal house of Lagash.
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and
22nd century
←← ↔ →→


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Folk etymology is a term used in two distinct ways:
  • A commonly held misunderstanding of the origin of a particular word, a false etymology.
  • "The popular perversion of the form of words in order to render it apparently significant"[1]

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Akkadian}}} 
Writing system: Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform 
Official status
Official language of: initially Akkad (central Mesopotamia); lingua franca of the Middle East and Egypt in the late Bronze and early Iron Ages.
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al-‘Arabiyyah in written Arabic (Kufic script):  
Pronunciation: /alˌʕa.raˈbij.ja/
Spoken in: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman,
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Aramaic}}} 
Writing system: Aramaic abjad, Syriac abjad, Hebrew abjad, Mandaic alphabet with a handfull of inscriptions found in Demotic[2] and Chinese[3] characters.
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Writing system: Armenian alphabet 
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Official language of: Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh
Regulated by: National Academy of Sciences of Armenia
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ISO 639-1: hy
ISO 639-2: arm (B)
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Ancient Greek refers to the second stage in the history of the Greek language[1] as it existed during the Archaic (9th–6th centuries BC) and Classical (5th–4th centuries BC) periods in Greece.
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Hebrew}}} 
Writing system: Alefbet Ivri abjad 
Official status
Official language of:  Israel
Regulated by: Academy of the Hebrew Language

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Kurdish}}} 
Writing system: Kurdish alphabet (modified Arabic alphabet in Iraq and Iran, modified Latin alphabet in Turkey and Syria, modified Cyrillic in the former USSR) 
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Official language of: Iraq
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