Zohre River (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: رودخانه زهره; ''zohre'' translates as '

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

' ) is a river in southwestern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. It is formed at the confluence of the rivers Rudkhaneye-Fekhlian, and Rude-Tenge-Shu, which flow from the southern slopes of the

Zagros The Zagros Mountains ( ar, جبال زاغروس, translit=Jibal Zaghrus; fa, کوه‌های زاگرس, Kuh hā-ye Zāgros; ku, چیاکانی زاگرۆس, translit=Çiyakani Zagros; Turkish: ''Zagros Dağları''; Luri: ''Kuh hā-ye Zāgro ...

mountains northwest of the city of

Nurabad, Fars Nurabad ( fa, نورآباد, also Romanized as Nūrābād) is a city and capital of Mamasani County, Fars Province, Iran. At the 2016 census, its population was 117,000, Nurabad is located from Kazerun, from Yasuj ( Kohgiluyeh-e Boyerahmad P ...

to the south-west of

Yasuj Yasuj ( fa, ; also romanized as Yāsūj, Yasooj, and Yesūj; Luri: ''Jasuc'' or ''Jasyç'') is a city and capital of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 96,786, in 20,297 families. Yasuj is an indu ...

, in the Fars province. The stream rises at an altitude of approximately 2450 m, and flows in the east-west direction for 490 km. It flows into the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

of the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

25 km southwest of Hendijan, in the southeast of

Khuzestan Khuzestan Province (also spelled Xuzestan; fa, استان خوزستان ''Ostān-e Xūzestān'') is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and it covers ...

, where it forms the Hendijan Delta.

Tributaries

Tributaries of the Zohreh River‎ are Fahlian River, and Kheyrabad River. The catchment area of the Zohreh is about 17 150 km2; of these 14 100 km2 is mountainous. The rest of the catchment consists of plains and mountainous foothills.

Antiquity

In antiquity it was called Arosis (

ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

Ἄροσις,

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''Arosis'', also ''Zarotis, Oratis, Oroatis''). The river represented the border of the ancient territories of Parsa (Persides), and

Susiana Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

. At the mouth of the river, the fleet of

Nearchus Nearchus or Nearchos ( el, Νέαρχος; – 300 BC) was one of the Greek officers, a navarch, in the army of Alexander the Great. He is known for his celebrated expeditionary voyage starting from the Indus River, through the Persian Gulf and e ...

(360–300 BC), an associate of

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

, stopped to rest and to take on water for five days to sail along the shores of Susiana. The town of

Alexandria Carmania Alexandria Carmania (, ''Alexandreia hē en Karmania'') was one of the seventy-plus cities founded or renamed by Alexander the Great. The town was founded by Alexander in January 324 BC after his army had reunited with Nearchus and his men who ...

was founded by Alexander in January 324 BC after his army had reunited with Nearchus and his men who had beached their boats near the mouth of the

Minab River The Minab River is a river in Hormozgan province, and Sistan and Baluchestan, Iran, near Harmosia. This river is formed by adjoining of two smaller rivers, the Roudan and Joqeen. These two rivers meet near the village of Borjegan, 25 km ...

, further down along the south coast of Iran in Hormozgan province.

Archaeology

The Zohreh Prehistoric Project is a long-term archaeological study program launched in 2015, and focusing on the Zohreh River plain. The research continues in the area south of the modern city of

Behbahan Behbahan ( fa, بهبهان, also romanized as Behbahān and Behbehān) is a city and capital of Behbahan County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. Etymology The origin of the name "Behbahan" may be from two words: "Beh" meaning good better, and "Bah ...

Khuzestan Province Khuzestan Province (also spelled Xuzestan; fa, استان خوزستان ''Ostān-e Xūzestān'') is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and it covers ...

. This area was inhabited at the end of the fifth and beginning of the fourth millennia BC. The principal ancient site being excavated is Tol-e Chega Sofla, also known as Chogha Sofla.Moghaddam, A. (2016). A fifth-millennium BC cemetery in the north Persian Gulf: The Zohreh Prehistoric Project. Antiquity, 90(353), E3. To the north, the Behbahan plain, intersected by Marun River, is also a closely associated area.

References

Literature

* * * Falcon, N.L. (1947). Raised beaches and terraces of the Iranian Makran coast. Geographical Journal, 109, 149–151. * Gharibreza, M., Habibi, A., Imamjomeh, S.R., & Ashraf, M.A. (2014). Coastal processes and sedimentary facies in the Zohreh River Delta (Northern Persian Gulf). CATENA, 122, 150–158. * Jamab, E.C. (1999). Iran integrated water plan, Zohreh River watershed. In W. Research (Ed.) Tehran: Ministry of Energy.

External links