Wadi Auja ( ar, وادي العوجا‎), also spelled Ouja, known in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

as Nahal Yitav () is a valley or stream ( ar, وادي‎ ', "

wadi Wadi ( ar, وَادِي, wādī), alternatively ''wād'' ( ar, وَاد), North African Arabic Oued, is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley. In some instances, it may refer to a wet (ephemeral) riverbed that contains water onl ...

"), in the

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

, originating near the Ein Samia spring and flowing to Al-Auja near

Jericho Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho Gove ...

before it runs into the

Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...

Name

"Al-auja" means "the meandering one". This should not to be confused with the

Yarkon River The Yarkon River, also Yarqon River or Jarkon River ( he, נחל הירקון, ''Nahal HaYarkon'', ar, نهر العوجا, ''Nahr al-Auja''), is a river in central Israel. The source of the Yarkon ("Greenish" in Hebrew) is at Tel Afek (Antip ...

in Israel which flows to the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

, known in Arabic by the name "Nahr al-Auja". During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

this coincidence led to the term of "the line of the two Aujas", referring to a strategic line connecting the two river valleys. The Hebrew name is based on the Israeli settlement

Yitav Yitav ( he, יִיטַ"ב, an abbreviation of ''Yad Yitzhak Tabenkin'') is an Israeli settlement and moshav shitufi in the southern Jordan Valley of the West Bank. Located just north of Jericho and west of the Palestinian village of al-Auja, i ...

, founded in 1970 on the northern river bank, next to the Palestinian village of Al-Auja. "Yitav" is an acronym for Yad Yitzhak Tabenkin.

Geography

Wadi Auja is 35 kilometers long and sets the boundary between the

Desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

and the eastern hillslopes of the West Bank. It has a

drainage area A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, the ...

of 200 square kilometers and descends from a height of approximately 1000 meters above sea level to -315 meters below sea level, where it flows into the

. The stream starts at Ein Samia, on the eastern slopes of

Mount Hazor Mount Hazor ( he, רמת חָצוֹר, translit=Ramat Hazor) is an irregularly shaped plateau, marking the geographical boundary between Samaria to its north and Judea to its south. Its peak, Ba'al Hazor (Arabic: Tall Asur), identified with the b ...

and flows eastward. Before its arrival to the

Jordan Rift Valley The Jordan Rift Valley, also Jordan Valley ''Bīrʿāt haYardēn'', ar, الغور Al-Ghor or Al-Ghawr),, date=November 2022 also called the Syro-African Depression, is an elongated depression located in modern-day Israel, and Jordan. This g ...

, it forms a deep and steep

gorge A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...

, some 3 kilometers long. In this area some waterfalls are formed. Ein Samia has been diverted to provide water to

Ramallah Ramallah ( , ; ar, رام الله, , God's Height) is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank that serves as the ''de facto'' administrative capital of the State of Palestine. It is situated on the Judaean Mountains, north of Jerusale ...

, some 20 km away, providing around 30% of the city's needs, and leaving most of the Wadi dry throughout the year. The Auja Spring produces an estimated 9 million cubic metres of water annually, which creates a small oasis that attracts thousands of tourists a year, as well as providing for the farmers of Auja village. Two ancient aqueducts built in Wadi Auja during the late

Second Temple The Second Temple (, , ), later known as Herod's Temple, was the reconstructed Temple in Jerusalem between and 70 CE. It replaced Solomon's Temple, which had been built at the same location in the United Kingdom of Israel before being inherited ...

period (and refurbished in later generations) carried water from their source at ''ʻAin el Aûjah'' ("the crooked spring") to their respective destinations, the one termed ''Ḳanât el Manîl'' ("the canal of el Manil") which led to an outlet in the Jordan valley north of Jericho, and the other termed ''Ḳanât Farʻûn'' ("Pharaoh's canal"), thought to have brought water to the fortified town of

Archelais Archelaïs ( grc, Ἀρχελαΐς) was a town in the Roman province of Palaestina Prima, corresponding to modern Khirbet el-Beiyudat (also spelled Khirbat al-Bayudat). It was founded by Herod the Great's son Archelaus to house workers for h ...

. The gorge section of the river is a natural reserve, where rows of precipitous cliffs are exposed and inside them a variety of rare

birds of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...

and

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

s can be found.

History

The area was occupied by

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

in 1967. Today, Wadi Auja is a route used by Palestinian hikers. It is quieter and more isolated than the popular routes hiking routes such as

Wadi Qelt Wadi Qelt ( ar, وادي القلط‎; Qelt is also spelled Qilt and Kelt, sometimes with the Arabic article, el- or al-), in Hebrew Nahal Prat ( he, נחל פרת), formerly Naḥal Faran (Pharan brook), is a valley, riverine gulch or strea ...

. The wadi is used by many

Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu (; , singular ) are nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert and A ...

shepherds.

References

External links

*Survey of Western Palestine, Map 15:
IAAWikimedia commons
* Wadis of the West Bank Tourist attractions in the State of Palestine Judaean Desert {{Palestine-river-stub

Name

Geography

History

See also

References

External links