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Kura River

 
Kura River

 
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Kura River
 
 
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See Kura
Kura

Kura may refer to* Kura River in Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan* Kura River, Russia in Russia* Kura Test Range in Kamchatka Krai, Russia, a major ICBM testing site during the Cold War...
 for other rivers called Kura.
Kura ( Georgian
Georgian language

Georgian is the official language of Georgia , a country in the Caucasus .Georgian is the primary language of about 3.9 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad ....
: ??????? - Mt'k'vari) is a river
River

A river is a natural stream of water, usually freshwater, flowing toward an ocean, a lake, or another stream. In some cases a river flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water....
 in the Caucasus Mountains
Caucasus Mountains

The Caucasus Mountains is a Mountain range in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea sea in the Caucasus region.The Caucasus Mountains are made up of two separate mountain systems:...
. Starting in north-eastern Turkey
Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in southwest Asia and Thrace in the Balkans region of Southern Europe....
 (formerly Georgian
Georgia (country)

Georgia is a transcontinental country in the Caucasus region, located at the dividing line between Europe and Asia. It is bordered by the Russia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, Armenia to the south, and Turkey to the southwest....
 province of Tao), it flows through Turkey to Georgia
Georgia (country)

Georgia is a transcontinental country in the Caucasus region, located at the dividing line between Europe and Asia. It is bordered by the Russia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, Armenia to the south, and Turkey to the southwest....
, then to Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan , is the largest and most populous country in the South Caucasus, located partially in Eastern Europe and partially in Western Asia....
, where it receives the Aras River as a right tributary
Tributary

A tributary is a stream or river which flows into a Mainstem river. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea. Tributaries and the mainstem river serve to drain the surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater by leading the water out into an ocean or some other large body of water....
, and enters the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea

The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the List of lakes by area or a full-fledged sea. It has a surface area of 371,000 square kilometers and a volume of 78,200 cubic kilometers ....
.






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See Kura
Kura

Kura may refer to* Kura River in Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan* Kura River, Russia in Russia* Kura Test Range in Kamchatka Krai, Russia, a major ICBM testing site during the Cold War...
 for other rivers called Kura.
Mtkvari
Kura ( Georgian
Georgian language

Georgian is the official language of Georgia , a country in the Caucasus .Georgian is the primary language of about 3.9 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad ....
: ??????? - Mt'k'vari) is a river
River

A river is a natural stream of water, usually freshwater, flowing toward an ocean, a lake, or another stream. In some cases a river flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water....
 in the Caucasus Mountains
Caucasus Mountains

The Caucasus Mountains is a Mountain range in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea sea in the Caucasus region.The Caucasus Mountains are made up of two separate mountain systems:...
. Starting in north-eastern Turkey
Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in southwest Asia and Thrace in the Balkans region of Southern Europe....
 (formerly Georgian
Georgia (country)

Georgia is a transcontinental country in the Caucasus region, located at the dividing line between Europe and Asia. It is bordered by the Russia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, Armenia to the south, and Turkey to the southwest....
 province of Tao), it flows through Turkey to Georgia
Georgia (country)

Georgia is a transcontinental country in the Caucasus region, located at the dividing line between Europe and Asia. It is bordered by the Russia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, Armenia to the south, and Turkey to the southwest....
, then to Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan , is the largest and most populous country in the South Caucasus, located partially in Eastern Europe and partially in Western Asia....
, where it receives the Aras River as a right tributary
Tributary

A tributary is a stream or river which flows into a Mainstem river. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea. Tributaries and the mainstem river serve to drain the surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater by leading the water out into an ocean or some other large body of water....
, and enters the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea

The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the List of lakes by area or a full-fledged sea. It has a surface area of 371,000 square kilometers and a volume of 78,200 cubic kilometers ....
. The total length of the river
River

A river is a natural stream of water, usually freshwater, flowing toward an ocean, a lake, or another stream. In some cases a river flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water....
 is 1,364 km.

The name Kura is related either to Megrelian kur 'water, river' or to an ancient Albanian
Caucasian Albania

Caucasian Albania was an ancient kingdom that existed on the territory of present-day Republic of Azerbaijan and southern Dagestan and came under strong Armenian religious and cultural influence....
 term for 'reservoir.' The Georgian
Georgian language

Georgian is the official language of Georgia , a country in the Caucasus .Georgian is the primary language of about 3.9 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad ....
 name of Kura is Mt'k'vari (in old Georgian
Georgian

Georgian may refer to:* Something from or related to Georgia , a country in the Caucasus** Georgian people** Georgian language** Georgian alphabet...
 Mt'k'uari), either from Georgian 'good water' or a Georgianized form of Megrelian tkvar-ua 'gnaw' (i.e., "river that eats its way through the mountains"). The name Kura was adopted first by the Russia
Russia

Russia , or the Russian Federation , is a list of countries spanning more than one continent country extending over much of northern Eurasia....
ns and later by Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
an cartographers. In some definitions of Europe, the Kura River defines the borderline between Europe and Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
.

Previously navigable up to Tbilisi
Tbilisi

Tbilisi , is the capital city and the largest city of Georgia , lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form Tpilisi and it was officially known as ?????? in Russian, until 1936....
 in Georgia, it is now much slower and shallower, as its power has been harnessed by hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity

Hydroelectricity is electricity generated by hydropower, i.e., the production of power through use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water....
 stations (mainly in Georgia). The river is moderately polluted by major industrial centers like Tbilisi and Rustavi
Rustavi

Rustavi or Rust'avi is a city in the southeast of Georgia , in the province of Kvemo Kartli, situated 16 miles southeast of the capital Tbilisi....
 in Georgia.

The river should not be confused with the Kura River, Russia, a westward flowing tributary of the Malka River
Malka River

Malka River , also known as Balyksu River , is a river in Kabardino-Balkaria in Russia, Terek's left tributary. The length of the river is 210 km....
 in Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai

Stavropol Krai is a federal subjects of Russia of Russia . Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia of Stavropol....
; the Kur River near Kursk, Russia; or the other Kur River
Kur River (Khabarovsk Krai)

The Kur River is a river in the Khabarovsk Krai, 434 km long. It merges with the Urmi River, forming the Tunguska River , which is a left tributary of the Amur River....
 near Khabarovsk
Khabarovsk

Khabarovsk is the administrative center and the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia. It is located some 30 km from the People's Republic of China border....
, also in Russia.

Kür in Azerbaijan

The Kür and Aras are the principal rivers of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan , is the largest and most populous country in the South Caucasus, located partially in Eastern Europe and partially in Western Asia....
; they flow through the Küra-Arax lowland. The rivers that directly flow into the Caspian Sea originate mainly from the north-eastern slope of the major Caucasus and Talysh mountains and flow across the Samur-Devechi and Lenkeran lowlands.

The Kür (Mt'k'vari) River basin area (86,000 km²) up to the junction with the Aras River is smaller than the Aras (Arax) water basin (101,937 km²). The river is still called Kur from the junction because the water level of the Kur is twice as high as that of the Aras River.

See also

  • Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan
    Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan

    Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan were formed over a long geological timeframe and changed significantly throughout that period. This is particularly evidenced by remnants of ancient rivers found throughout the country....


External links

  • . The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05.