Aras
Aras is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 39.16°, 45.35°
About Aras
The Aras is a transboundary river in the Caucasus. It rises in eastern Turkey and flows along the borders between Turkey and Armenia, between Turkey and the Nakhchivan exclave of Azerbaijan, between Iran and both Azerbaijan and Armenia, and, finally, through Azerbaijan where it flows into the Kura river as a right tributary. It drains the south side of the Lesser Caucasus Mountains, while the Kura drains the north side of the Lesser Caucasus. The river's total length is 1,072 km (666 mi) and its watershed covers an area of 102,000 km2 (39,000 mi2). The Aras is one of the longest rivers in the Caucasus.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Aras River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Aras in Depth
Geography
The Aras is supported by the Kocagün stream, Dallı stream and Orman stream from the Bingöl Mountains on the borders of Varto district, which merge with it around the Kırıkhan village of Tekman district. It is surrounded by the Aras Mountains from the south. The Aras meets the Akhuryan River southeast of Digor. From Digor it flows along the Armenia–Turkey border, then runs close to the corridor that connects Turkey to Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan exclave, and continues along the Iranian-Armenian and the Iranian-Azerbaijani border.
Etymology and history
In Armenian tradition, the river is named after Arast, a great-grandson of the legendary Armenian patriarch Haik. The name was later Hellenized to Araxes and was applied to the Kura–Araxes culture, a prehistoric people who flourished in the valleys of the Kura and Aras. The river is also mentioned in the last chapter of Virgil's Aeneid VIII, as "angry at the bridge," since the Romans built a bridge over it so that it is thereby conquered. The river Aras has been associated with the biblical rivers Gihon and Pishon. Robert H. Hewsen described Aras as the only "true river" of Armenia and as "Mother Araxes," a symbol of pride to the Armenian people.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Aras River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Aras: Key Facts
| Length | 1,072 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 285 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 102,000 km² |
| Source | Bingöl Dağları |
| Mouth | Kura River |
| Drainage system | Caspian Sea Basin |
| Tributaries | Akhurian River, Metsamor, Hrazdan River, Azat River, Vedi, Arpa River, Naxçıvançay, Hakari River |
Facts from Wikidata Q179751 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Aras: Quick Answers
- Where is Aras?
- Aras is located in Azerbaijan and Iran and Turkey and Armenia, at 39.1641° N, 45.3477° E.
- Are there dams on the Aras?
- No dam on the Aras is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.