Amu Darya

Amu Darya
Oxus, Wehrōd, də Āmu Sind, Amu River
Looking at the Amu Darya from Turkmenistan
Map of area around the Aral Sea. Aral Sea boundaries are c. 2008. The Amu Darya drainage basin is in orange, and the Syr Darya basin in yellow.
EtymologyNamed for the city of Āmul (now Türkmenabat)
Native name
  • Амударё (Amudaryo) (Uzbek)
  • Амударё (Amudaryo) (Tajik)
  • Амударья (Amudar'ya) (Russian)
  • Amu Darýa (Turkmen)
  • د امو سیند (Pashto)
  • امو دريا (Dari)
Location
Countries
RegionCentral Asia
Physical characteristics
SourcePamir River/Panj River
 • locationLake Zorkul, Pamir Mountains, Afghanistan/Tajikistan
 • coordinates37°27′04″N 73°34′21″E / 37.45111°N 73.57250°E / 37.45111; 73.57250
 • elevation4,130 m (13,550 ft)
2nd sourceKyzylsu River/Vakhsh River
 • locationAlay Valley, Pamir Mountains, Tajikistan
 • coordinates39°13′27″N 72°55′26″E / 39.22417°N 72.92389°E / 39.22417; 72.92389
 • elevation4,525 m (14,846 ft)
Source confluenceKerki
 • locationTajikistan
 • coordinates37°06′35″N 68°18′44″E / 37.10972°N 68.31222°E / 37.10972; 68.31222
 • elevation326 m (1,070 ft)
MouthAral Sea
 • location
Amudarya Delta, Uzbekistan
 • coordinates
44°06′30″N 59°40′52″E / 44.10833°N 59.68111°E / 44.10833; 59.68111
 • elevation
28 m (92 ft)
Length2,400 km (1,500 mi)
Basin size534,739 km2 (206,464 sq mi)
Discharge 
 • average2,525 m3/s (89,200 cu ft/s)[1]
 • minimum420 m3/s (15,000 cu ft/s)
 • maximum5,900 m3/s (210,000 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftPanj River
 • rightVakhsh River, Surkhan Darya, Sherabad River, Zeravshan River

The Amu Darya /ˈɑːm ˈdɑːr.jə/,[a] also called the Amu, the Amo, and historically the Oxus /ˈɒksəs/ (Latin: Ōxus; Greek: Ὦξος, Ôxos),[2] is a major river in Central Asia, which flows through Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. Rising in the Pamir Mountains, north of the Hindu Kush, the Amu Darya is formed by the confluence of the Vakhsh and Panj rivers, in the Tigrovaya Balka Nature Reserve on the border between Afghanistan and Tajikistan, and flows from there north-westwards into the southern remnants of the Aral Sea. In its upper course, the river forms part of Afghanistan's northern border with Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. In ancient history, the river was regarded as the boundary of Greater Iran with Turan, which roughly corresponded to present-day Central Asia.[3] The Amu Darya has a flow of about 70 cubic kilometres per year on average.[4]

  1. ^ Daene C. McKinney (18 November 2003). "Cooperative management of transboundary water resources in Central Asia" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-09. Retrieved 2014-10-03.
  2. ^ "Strabo, Geography, Book 11, chapter 7, section 4". www.perseus.tufts.edu.
  3. ^ B. Spuler, Āmū Daryā, in Encyclopædia Iranica, online ed., 2009
  4. ^ Glantz, Michael H. (2005-01-01). "Water, Climate, and Development Issues in the Amu Darya Basin". Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change. 10 (1): 23–50. doi:10.1007/s11027-005-7829-8. ISSN 1573-1596. S2CID 154617195.


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