Wadi El Auja
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Wadi Auja ( ar, وادي العوجا‎), also spelled Ouja, known in Hebrew as Nahal Yitav () is a valley or stream ( ar, وادي‎ ', " wadi"), in the West Bank, 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 in Tel Aviv, known in Arabic by the name "Nahr al-Auja". During World War I 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 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 ...
. It has a drainage area 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
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 ...
. 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, 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. 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 and perennial plants can be found.


History

The area was occupied by Israel 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. 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.


See also

* Jordan Valley


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