Helmand
Helmand 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
- 32.33°, 65.07°
About Helmand
The Helmand river, also historically known as the Etymandros, is the longest river in Afghanistan and the primary watershed for the endorheic Sistan Basin. It originates in the Sanglakh Range of the Hindu Kush mountains in the northeastern part of Maidan Wardak Province, where it is separated from the watershed of the Kabul River by the Unai Pass. The Helmand feeds into the Hamun Lake on the border of Afghanistan and Iran.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Helmand River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Helmand in Depth
Geography
The Helmand stretches for 1,150 km (710 mi). It rises in the northeastern part of Maidan Wardak Province in the Hindu Kush mountains, about 40 km west of Kabul (34°34′N 68°33′E), flowing southwestward through Daykundi Province and Uruzgan Province. After passing through the city of Lashkargah in Helmand Province, it enters the desert of Dasht-e Margo, and then flows to the Sistan marshes and the Hamun-i-Helmand lake region around Zabol at the Afghan-Iranian border (31°9′N 61°33′E). A few smaller rivers such as Tarnak and Arghandab flow into Helmand.
This river, managed by the Helmand and Arghandab Valley Authority, is used extensively for irrigation, although a buildup of mineral salts has decreased its usefulness in watering crops. For much of its length, the Helmand is free of salt.
History
The Helmand valley region is mentioned by name in the Avesta (Fargard 1:13) as the Aryan land of Haetumant, one of the early centres of the Zoroastrian faith in areas that are now Afghanistan. However, by the late first millennium BC and early first millennium AD, the preponderance of communities of Hindus and Buddhists in the Helmand and Kabul valleys led to Parthians referring to it as India. From 1758 to 1842, the Helmand formed the northern borders of the Brahui Khanate of Kalat.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Helmand River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Helmand: Key Facts
| Length | 1,150 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 78 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 500,000 km² |
| Source | Hindu Kush |
| Mouth | Hamun-e Helmand |
| Tributaries | Arghandab River, Musa Qala River |
Facts from Wikidata Q8510 (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
Helmand: Quick Answers
- Where is Helmand?
- Helmand is located in Afghanistan and Iran, at 32.3281° N, 65.0737° E.
- Are there dams on the Helmand?
- No dam on the Helmand is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.