The Nile drainage basin is about 3,349 million square miles, the third-largest drainage area, and includes parts of eleven countries; Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Burundi, DR Congo, and Eritrea. During the late-Miocene Messinian salinity crisis, when the Mediterranean Sea was a closed basin and evaporated to the point of being empty or nearly so, the Nile cut its course down to the new base level until it was several hundred metres below world ocean level at Aswan and 2,400m (7,900ft) below Cairo. Considered the widest river in the world, the Amazon has a maximum . Each computer run postulated a set of reservoirs and operating equations for the release of water as a function of the month and the levels upstream. Still, experts do not agree which tributary of the Kagera is the longest and therefore the most distant source of the Nile. The grasslands of this part of Africa changed to vast arid lands because of climatic and geological. The flow of the Blue Nile varies considerably over its yearly cycle and is the main contribution to the large natural variation of the Nile flow. Simulation studies to design water resources are discussed further in the article on hydrology transport models, which have been used since the 1980s to analyze water quality. How Large is the Nile River in Volume? Thus, all tombs were west of the Nile, because the Egyptians believed that in order to enter the afterlife, they had to be buried on the side that symbolized death. Abridged illustrated edition, as The Story of the Blue Nile (Harper & Row, 1966). Below the Aswan High Dam, which impounds the lake, it continues northward to its delta near Cairo, where it empties into the Mediterranean. It rises south of the Equator and flows northward through northeastern Africa to drain into the Mediterranean Sea. In some myths, the Nile was considered a manifestation of the god Hapi who blessed the land with abundance, according to the Ancient History Encyclopedia. This fluctuation is caused by the substantial variation in the flow of the Sobat, which has a minimum flow of about 99m3/s (3,500cuft/s) in March and a peak flow of over 680m3/s (24,000cuft/s) in October. Its three main tributaries are the White Nile, the Blue Nile, and the Atbara. Their journey of over 5,000 kilometres (3,100mi) took five months. . Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). It is one of the world's largest river deltas with about 40 million inhabitants approximately half of Egypt's population. It has a length of about 4,132 miles (6,650 kilometres) and drains an area estimated at 1,293,000 square miles (3,349,000 square kilometres). Heres how it works. With the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) underway near the Ethiopia-Sudan border, a complex transboundary water situation is at hand: two large damsthe GERD and the High. The Blue Nile begins near Lake Tana in Ethiopia. The East African lake region experiences tropical climates, characterized by well-distributed rainfall and little temperature variations. The Nile River delta was also an ideal growing location for the papyrus plant. The River Nile, known as the father of the African River, is Africa and the worlds longest river, stretching approximately 6,650 kilometers from its sources (Blue and White Nile) to the mouth at the Mediterranean Sea. [82] From the 70 incidents of drought which took place between 1900 and 2012, 55 incidents took place in Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya and Tanzania. The Tabula Rogeriana depicted the source as three lakes in 1154. The first cataract, the closest to the mouth of the river, is at Aswan, north of the Aswan Dam. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. You cannot download interactives. Below is the article summary. As a result of this, the Blue Nile was known as far as its exit from the Ethiopian foothills and the White Nile as far as the mouth of the Sobat River. Possibly the most well-known animal and most feared is the Nile crocodile. No part of the Nile experiences the true Mediterranean or tropical climate. The Nile Delta is approximately 100 miles (161 km) long from north to south, and it spreads out along about 150 miles (241 km) of Egyptian coastline, from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in. The Nile River System has three main branches - the White Nile, the Blue Nile, and the Atbara river. [5][6] Of the world's major rivers, the Nile is one of the smallest, as measured by annual flow in cubic metres of water. The White Nile is traditionally considered to be the headwaters stream. An unending source of sustenance, it played a crucial role in the development of Egyptian civilization. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Its most distant source is the Kagera River in Burundi. The drainage basin of the Nile covers 3,254,555 square kilometers (1,256,591sqmi), about 10% of the area of Africa. The Nile Delta is 100 miles long and 150 miles wide. Thus, the Niles periodic rise remained a mystery for the better of the 19th century until the role played by the tropical region on the rivers regime was discovered. The following bridges cross the Blue Nile and connect Khartoum to Khartoum North: The following bridges cross the White Nile and connect Khartoum to Omdurman: The following bridges cross from Omdurman: to Khartoum North: The following bridges cross to Tuti from Khartoum state's three cities. [52], The Giza Pyramid Complex originally overlooked a branch of the Nile that no longer exists. Canals bring water from the Nile to irrigate farms and support cities. Until recently, the Nile River was recognized as the longest river in the world. The Nile River also continues to be an important trade route, connecting Africa with markets in Europe and beyond. A 1929 treaty (and a subsequent one in 1959) gave Egypt and Sudan rights to nearly all of the Nile waters. It was ultimately Welsh-American explorer Henry Morton Stanley who confirmed Speke's discovery, circumnavigating Lake Victoria and reporting the great outflow at Ripon Falls on the lake's northern shore. The Ancient Egyptians cultivated and traded wheat, flax, papyrus and other crops around the Nile. Owing to their failure to penetrate the Sudd wetlands of South Sudan, the upper reaches of the White Nile remained largely unknown to the ancient Greeks and Romans. Depending on the measurement system used, the Nile may be the world's longest river. Although many people think about Egypt when the Nile River is mentioned, only about 1/5 of the river is actually in this country. The Nile [b] is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. Other major tributaries are the White and Blue Nile. Recommendations were made to the Sudanese authorities. All rights reserved. The calculations were run on an IBM 650 computer. Common vegetations on these plains include reedmace, papyrus, water hyacinth, and water lettuce. The White Nile, the river's headwaters, flows from Lake . Nile cities include Khartoum, Aswan, Luxor (Thebes), and the Giza Cairo conurbation. (See Article: Niger River) . The longest river in the world, it is about 4,132 mi (6,650 km) long from its remotest headstream (which flows into Lake Victoria) to the Mediterranean Sea. Updates? Morrice and W.N. The White Nile emerges from Lake Victoria, in Jinja, Uganda, as the Victoria Nile and flows through Lake Kyoga and Lake Albert. The largest supply of the Nile is the Victoria Lake. [22][citation needed] Another possible etymology derives from the Semitic term Nahal, meaning "river". The two distributaries empty into the Mediterranean Sea. . Between Lake Tana and the canyon, the river receives inflow from several rivers, including Walaqa, Bashilo, and Wanqa Rivers on the left bank and Tul, Handassa, Abbaya, and Tammi Rivers, among others, on the right bank. The growth of the current Sahara began about 6,000, conquest of the northern and central Sudan, "Pinpointing the sources and measuring the lengths of the principal rivers of the world", Amazon Longer Than Nile River, Scientists Say, "The Quest for Cooperation in the Nile Water Conflicts: A Case for Eritrea", "What's the Blue Nile and the White Nile? Much less disputable is the Blue Nile's source at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. The Kagera River is the longest source of Lake Victoria, located in Eastern Africa. Travelling Along Rivers: Nile River from Source to Mouth, Origins: Who Owns the Nile? Editor of. The Nile River is 1.7 miles wide at its widest point at Edfu, and this African giant is the second-longest river on earth. It is located just over 300 miles northwest of Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa. The silt area was known as the Black Land, while the desert lands further out were known as the Red Land. In the Odyssey, the epic poem written by the Greek poet Homer (7th century bce), Aigyptos is the name of the Nile (masculine) as well as the country of Egypt (feminine) through which it flows. There is plenty of debate surrounding this, however, for many believe the Amazon River in South America might be longer. Salama suggests that during the Paleogene and Neogene Periods (66million to 2.588million years ago) a series of separate closed continental basins each occupied one of the major parts of the Sudanese Rift System: Mellut rift, White Nile rift, Blue Nile rift, Atbara rift and Sag El Naam rift. However, the Kagera River is considered the Niles distant source. The ancient Egyptians called the river Ar or Aur (Coptic: Iaro), Black, in allusion to the colour of the sediments carried by the river when it is in flood. Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopias History-Changing Dam. The Nile River flows over 6,600 kilometers (4,100 miles) until emptying into the Mediterranean Sea. In Egyptian Arabic, the Nile is called en-Nl, while in Standard Arabic it is called an-Nl. Awange is referring to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), currently under construction on the Blue Nile. iii) Proto-Nile, commencing about 600,000 years BP. [16][17] Beyond that, however, the etymology is disputed. The Blue Nile flows about 1,400 kilometres to Khartoum, where the Blue Nile and White Nile join to form the Nile. A river may be only kilometers long, or it may span much of a continent. For thousands of years, the river has provided a source of irrigation to transform the dry area around it into lush agricultural land. If you have questions about licensing content on this page, please contact ngimagecollection@natgeo.com for more information and to obtain a license. The Nile and Ancient Egypt: North Africa wasn't always a desert. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. [59] At some point the sediments raised the riverbed sufficiently for the river to overflow westward into a depression to create Lake Moeris. The Nile in Egypt and Sudan is now called Al-Nl, Al-Bar, and Bar Al-Nl or Nahr Al-Nl. New York, Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The two rivers meet at the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. In the ancient Egyptian language, the Nile was called 'p or Iteru, meaning "river." Modern exploration of the Nile basin began with the conquest of the northern and central Sudan by the Ottoman viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad Ali, and his sons from 1821 onward. The Nile was also an important part of ancient Egyptian spiritual life. There is quite a bit of speculation over whether the Nile still holds this title. The wadi passes through Gharb Darfur near the northern border with Chad and meets up with the Nile near the southern point of the Great Bend. The Amazon River is the second longest river in the world and is about 4,000 miles (6400 km) long. It flows over six groups of cataracts, from the sixth at Sabaloka just north of Khartoum northward to Abu Hamad. Lake Albert is on the border of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but the Nile is not a border river at this point. The silt created rich, fertile soil for planting crops vital in this land of so little rain.