A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over a very long period. Some valleys are formed through erosion by

glacial ice A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

. These glaciers may remain present in valleys in high mountains or polar areas. At lower latitudes and altitudes, these glacially formed valleys may have been created or enlarged during ice ages but now are ice-free and occupied by streams or rivers. In desert areas, valleys may be entirely dry or carry a watercourse only rarely. In areas of limestone bedrock,

dry valley A dry valley may develop on many kinds of permeable rock, such as limestone and chalk, or sandy terrains that do not regularly sustain surface water flow. Such valleys do not hold surface water because it sinks into the permeable bedrock. There ...

s may also result from drainage now taking place underground rather than at the surface. Rift valleys arise principally from earth movements, rather than erosion. Many different types of valleys are described by geographers, using terms that may be global in use or else applied only locally.

Formation of valleys

Valleys may arise through several different processes. Most commonly, they arise from erosion over long periods by moving water and are known as river valleys. Typically small valleys containing streams feed into larger valleys which in turn feed into larger valleys again, eventually reaching the ocean or perhaps an internal drainage basin. In polar areas and at high altitudes, valleys may be eroded by glaciers; these typically have a U-shaped profile in cross-section, in contrast to river valleys, which tend to have a V-shaped profile. Other valleys may arise principally through tectonic processes such as

rifting In geology, a rift is a linear zone where the lithosphere is being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics. Typical rift features are a central linear downfaulted depression, called a graben, or more commonly a half-graben w ...

. All three processes can contribute to the development of a valley over geological time. The flat (or relatively flat) portion of a valley between its sides is referred to as the valley floor. The valley floor is typically formed by river sediments and may have fluvial terraces.

River valleys

The development of a river valley is affected by the character of the bedrock over which the river or stream flows, the elevational difference between its top and bottom, and indeed the climate. Typically the flow will increase downstream and the gradient will decrease. In the upper valley, the stream will most effectively erode its bed through

corrasion Corrasion is a geomorphological term for the process of mechanical erosion of the earth's surface caused when materials are transported across it by running water, waves, glaciers, wind or gravitational movement downslope. An example is the weari ...

to produce a steep-sided V-shaped valley. The presence of more resistant rock bands, of geological faults,

fractures Fracture is the separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action of stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacement discontinuity surfaces within the solid. If a displ ...

, and folds may determine the course of the stream and result in a twisting course with

interlocking spur An interlocking spur, also known as an overlapping spur, is one of any number of projecting ridges that extend alternately from the opposite sides of the wall of a young, V-shaped valley down which a river with a winding course flows. Each of th ...

s. In the middle valley, as numerous streams have coalesced, the valley is typically wider, the flow slower and both erosion and deposition may take place. More lateral erosion takes place in the middle section of a river's course, as strong currents on the outside of its curve erode the bank. Conversely, deposition may take place on the inside of curves where the current is much slacker, the process leading to the river assuming a meandering character. In the lower valley, gradients are lowest, meanders may be much broader and a broader floodplain may result. Deposition dominates over erosion. A typical river basin or drainage basin will incorporate each of these different types of valleys. Some sections of a stream or river valleys may have vertically incised their course to such an extent that the valley they occupy is best described as a gorge, ravine, or

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

. Rapid down-cutting may result from localized uplift of the land surface or rejuvenation of the watercourse as a result for example of a reduction in the base level to which the river is eroded, e.g. lowered global sea level during an ice age. Such

rejuvenation Rejuvenation is a medical discipline focused on the practical reversal of the aging process. Rejuvenation is distinct from life extension. Life extension strategies often study the causes of aging and try to oppose those causes in order to slow ...

may also result in the production of river terraces.

Glacial valleys

There are various forms of valleys associated with glaciation. True glacial valleys are those that have been cut by a glacier which may or may not still occupy the valley at the present day. Such valleys may also be known as glacial troughs. They typically have a U-shaped cross-section and are characteristic landforms of mountain areas where glaciation has occurred or continues to take place. The uppermost part of a glacial valley frequently consists of one or more 'armchair-shaped' hollows, or '

cirques A (; from the Latin word ') is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are corrie (from Scottish Gaelic , meaning a pot or cauldron) and (; ). A cirque may also be a similarly shaped landfo ...

', excavated by the rotational movement downslope of a cirque glacier. During glacial periods, for example, the Pleistocene

ice ages An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...

, it is in these locations that glaciers initially form and then, as the ice age proceeds extend downhill through valleys that have previously been shaped by water rather than ice. Abrasion the movement of ice and particularly by rock material embedded within it causes the widening and deepening of the valley to produce the characteristic U or trough shape with relatively steep, even vertical sides and a relatively flat bottom.

Interlocking spur An interlocking spur, also known as an overlapping spur, is one of any number of projecting ridges that extend alternately from the opposite sides of the wall of a young, V-shaped valley down which a river with a winding course flows. Each of th ...

s associated with the development of river valleys are preferentially eroded to produce

truncated spur A truncated spur is a spur, which is a ridge that descends towards a valley floor or coastline from a higher elevation, that ends in an inverted-V face and was produced by the erosional truncation of the spur by the action of either streams, wa ...

s, typical of glaciated mountain landscapes. The upper end of the trough below the ice-contributing cirques may be a trough-end.

Valley step A valley step (german: Talstufe or ''Talschwelle'') is a prominent change in the longitudinal slope of a valley, mainly in trough valleys formed by glaciers. Typically, a valley formed by glaciers has a series of basins with intervening steps f ...

s (or 'rock steps') can result from differing erosion rates due to both the nature of the bedrock (hardness and jointing for example) and the power of the moving ice. In places, a rock basin may be excavated which may later be filled with water to form a

ribbon lake A ribbon lake is a long and deep, finger-shaped lake, usually found in a glacial trough. As such, a ribbon lake is one of a number of glacial landscapes, including arêtes, corries, rock lips, rock basins and terminal moraines. Such a lake's ...

or else by sediments. Such features are found in coastal areas as

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icel ...

s. The shape of the valley which results from all of these influences may only become visible upon the recession of the glacier that forms it. A river or stream may remain in the valley; if it is smaller than one would expect given the size of its valley, it can be considered an example of a

misfit stream A misfit stream is a river that is either too large or too small to have eroded the valley or cave passage in which it flows. This term is also used for a stream or river with meanders that obviously are not proportional in size to the meanders ...

Other interesting glacially carved valleys include: * Yosemite Valley (United States) *

Side valley Side valleys and tributary valleys are valleys whose brooks or rivers flow into greater ones. Upstream, the valleys can be classified in an increasing order which is equivalent to the usual orographic order: the tributaries are ordered from th ...

s of the Austrian river

Salzach The Salzach (Austrian: �saltsax ) is a river in Austria and Germany. It is in length and is a right tributary of the Inn, which eventually joins the Danube. Its drainage basin of comprises large parts of the Northern Limestone and Central ...

for their parallel directions and hanging mouths. * That of the St. Mary River in Glacier National Park in Montana, United States.

Tunnel

A tunnel valley is a large, long, U-shaped valley originally cut under the glacial ice near the margin of continental ice sheets such as that now covering Antarctica and formerly covering portions of all continents during past glacial ages. Such valleys can be up to long, wide, and deep (its depth may vary along its length). Tunnel valleys were formed by subglacial

water erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dist ...

. They once served as subglacial drainage pathways carrying large volumes of meltwater. Their cross-sections exhibit steep-sided flanks similar to fjord walls, and their flat bottoms are typical of subglacial glacial erosion.

Meltwater

In northern Central Europe, the Scandinavian ice sheet during the various ice ages advanced slightly uphill against the lie of the land. As a result, its meltwaters flowed parallel to the ice margin to reach the North Sea basin, forming huge, flat valleys known as

Urstromtäler An ''urstromtal'' (plural: ''Urstromtäler'') is a type of broad glacial valley, for example, in northern Central Europe, that appeared during the ice ages, or individual glacial periods of an ice age, at the edge of the Scandinavian ice sheet and ...

. Unlike the other forms of glacial valleys, these were formed by glacial meltwaters.

Transition forms and shoulders

Depending on the topography, the rock types, and the

climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologi ...

, a variety of transitional forms between V-, U- and plain valleys can form. The floor or bottom of these valleys can be broad or narrow, but all valleys have a shoulder. The broader a mountain valley, the lower its shoulders are located in most cases. An important exception is canyons where the shoulder almost is near the top of the valley's slope. In the Alps – e.g. the Tyrolean

Inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

valley – the shoulders are quite low (100–200 meters above the bottom). Many villages are located here (esp. on the sunny side) because the climate is very mild: even in winter when the valley's floor is filled with fog, these villages are in sunshine. In some stress-tectonic regions of the Rockies or the Alps (e.g. Salzburg), the

side valley Side valleys and tributary valleys are valleys whose brooks or rivers flow into greater ones. Upstream, the valleys can be classified in an increasing order which is equivalent to the usual orographic order: the tributaries are ordered from th ...

s are parallel to each other, and are hanging. Smaller streams flow into rivers as deep canyons or waterfalls.

Hanging tributary

Closeup of Bridalveil Fall seen from Tunnel View in Yosemite NP

A hanging valley is a tributary valley that is higher than the main valley. They are most commonly associated with U-shaped valleys, where a tributary glacier flows into a glacier of larger volume. The main glacier erodes a deep U-shaped valley with nearly vertical sides, while the tributary glacier, with a smaller volume of ice, makes a shallower U-shaped valley. Since the surfaces of the glaciers were originally at the same elevation, the shallower valley appears to be 'hanging' above the main valley. Often, waterfalls form at or near the outlet of the upper valley. Hanging valleys also occur in

systems underwater. The branches of

Sognefjord The Sognefjord or Sognefjorden (, en, Sogn Fjord), nicknamed the King of the Fjords ( no, Fjordenes konge), is the largest and deepest fjord in Norway. Located in Vestland county in Western Norway, it stretches inland from the ocean to the sma ...

are much shallower than the main fjord. The mouth of Fjærlandsfjord is about 400 meters deep while the main fjord nearby is 1200 meters deep. The mouth of Ikjefjord is only 50 meters deep while the main fjord is around 1300 meters at the same point. Glaciated terrain is not the only site of hanging streams and valleys. Hanging valleys are also simply the product of varying rates of erosion of the main valley and the tributary valleys. The varying rates of erosion are associated with the composition of the adjacent rocks in the different valley locations. The tributary valleys are eroded and deepened by glaciers or erosion at a slower rate than that of the main valley floor; thus the difference in the two valleys' depth increases over time. The tributary valley, composed of more resistant rock, then hangs over the main valley.

Trough-shaped

Trough-shaped valleys also form in regions of heavy topographic

denudation Denudation is the geological processes in which moving water, ice, wind, and waves erode the Earth's surface, leading to a reduction in elevation and in relief of landforms and landscapes. Although the terms erosion and denudation are used interch ...

. By contrast with glacial U-shaped valleys, there is less downward and sideways erosion. The severe downslope denudation results in gently sloping valley sides; their transition to the actual valley bottom is unclear. Trough-shaped valleys occur mainly in periglacial regions and in

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

regions of variable wetness. Both climates are dominated by heavy denudation.

Box

Box valleys have wide, relatively level floors and steep sides. They are common in periglacial areas and occur in mid-latitudes, but also occur in tropical and arid regions.

Rift

Rift valleys, such as the

Albertine Rift The Albertine Rift is the western branch of the East African Rift, covering parts of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It extends from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tan ...

and

Gregory Rift The Gregory Rift is the eastern branch of the East African Rift fracture system. The rift is being caused by the separation of the Somali plate from the Nubian plate, driven by a thermal plume. Although the term is sometimes used in the narrow ...

are formed by the expansion of the Earth's crust due to tectonic activity beneath the Earth's surface.

Terms for valleys

There are many terms used for different sorts of valleys. They include: * Cove: A small valley, closed at one or both ends, in the central or southern

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

which sometimes results from the erosion of a geologic window. *

Dell Dell is an American based technology company. It develops, sells, repairs, and supports computers and related products and services. Dell is owned by its parent company, Dell Technologies. Dell sells personal computers (PCs), Server (computin ...

: A small, secluded, and often wooded valley. *

Dry valley A dry valley may develop on many kinds of permeable rock, such as limestone and chalk, or sandy terrains that do not regularly sustain surface water flow. Such valleys do not hold surface water because it sinks into the permeable bedrock. There ...

: A valley not created by sustained surface water flow. * Erosional Valley: A valley formed by erosion. * Hollow: A term used regionally for a small valley surrounded by mountains or

ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...

s. In Ireland, New England,

Appalachia Appalachia () is a cultural region in the Eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York State to northern Alabama and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Newfoundland and Labrador, C ...

, and the Ozarks of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage la ...

and Missouri, a hollow is a small valley or dry stream bed. *

Longitudinal valley A longitudinal valley is an elongated valley found between two almost-parallel mountain chains in geologically young fold mountains, such as the Alps, Carpathians, Andes, or the highlands of Central Asia. They are often occupied and shaped by a ...

: An elongated valley found between two nearly-parallel mountain chains. *

Steephead Valley A steephead valley, steephead or blind valley is a deep, narrow, flat bottomed valley with an abrupt ending. Such closed valleys may arise in limestone or karst landscapes, where a layer of permeable rock lies above an impermeable substract such ...

: A deep, narrow, flat-bottomed valley with an abrupt ending. * Strike Valley: A valley typically developed parallel to a

cuesta A cuesta (from Spanish ''cuesta'' "slope") is a hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side, and a steep slope on the other. In geology the term is more specifically applied to a ridge where a harder sedimentary rock overlies a softer layer ...

from more readily eroded strata. * Structural Valley: A valley formed by geologic events such as drop faults or the rise of highlands. Similar geographical features such as

gullies A gully is a landform created by running water, mass movement, or commonly a combination of both eroding sharply into soil or other relatively erodible material, typically on a hillside or in river floodplains or terraces. Gullies resemble la ...

chine A chine () is a steep-sided coastal gorge where a river flows to the sea through, typically, soft eroding cliffs of sandstone or clays. The word is still in use in central Southern England—notably in East Devon, Dorset, Hampshire and the Isl ...

s, and

kloof Kloof is a leafy upper-class town, that includes a smaller area called Everton, located approximately 26 km north-west of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Once an independent municipality, it now forms part of greater Durban area ...

s, are not usually referred to as valleys. Indus Kohistan Pakistan

British regional terms for valleys

The terms corrie,

glen A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower ...

, and

strath A strath is a large valley, typically a river valley that is wide and shallow (as opposed to a glen, which is typically narrower and deep). Word and etymology An anglicisation of the Gaelic word ''srath'', it is one of many that have been ab ...

are all Anglicisations of Gaelic terms and are commonly encountered in place-names in Scotland and other areas where Gaelic was once widespread. Strath signifies a wide valley between hills, the floor of which is either level or slopes gently. A glen is a river valley which is steeper and narrower than a strath. A corrie is a basin-shaped hollow in a mountain. Each of these terms also occurs in parts of the world formerly colonized by Britain. ''Corrie'' is used more widely by geographers as a synonym for (glacial) ''

cirque A (; from the Latin word ') is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are corrie (from Scottish Gaelic , meaning a pot or cauldron) and (; ). A cirque may also be a similarly shaped landfo ...

'', as is the word '' cwm'' borrowed from Welsh. The word dale occurs widely in place names in the north of England and, to a lesser extent, in southern Scotland. As a generic name for a type of valley, the term typically refers to a wide valley, though there are many much smaller stream valleys within the Yorkshire Dales which are named "(specific name) Dale".

Clough Clough ( ; ) is a village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It sits about 3 miles from Dundrum on the A2 between Newcastle and Belfast. The A2 continues via Downpatrick and the coast via Strangford and the Portaferry - Strangfo ...

is a word in common use in northern England for a narrow valley with steep sides. '' Gill'' is used to describe a ravine containing a mountain stream in Cumbria and the Pennines. The term combe (also encountered as ''coombe'') is widespread in southern England and describes a short valley set into a hillside. Other terms for small valleys such as hope, dean, slade, slac''k'' and bottom are commonly encountered in place-names in various parts of England but are no longer in general use as synonyms for ''valley''. The term vale is used in England and Wales to describe a wide river valley, usually with a particularly wide flood plain or flat valley bottom. In Southern England, vales commonly occur between the outcrops of different relatively erosion-resistant rock formations, where less resistant rock, often

claystone Mudrocks are a class of fine-grained siliciclastic sedimentary rocks. The varying types of mudrocks include siltstone, claystone, mudstone, slate, and shale. Most of the particles of which the stone is composed are less than and are too sma ...

has been eroded. An example is the

Vale of White Horse The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. It was historically a north-west projection of Berkshire. The area is commonly referred to as the 'Vale of ''the'' White Horse'. It is crossed by the Ridgeway Na ...

in Oxfordshire.

Human settlement

Some of the first human

complex societies A complex society is a concept that is shared by a range of disciplines including anthropology, archaeology, history and sociology to describe a stage of social formation. The concept was formulated by scholars attempting to understand how modern ...

originated in river valleys, such as that of the

Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest ri ...

, Tigris-Euphrates, Indus, Ganges,

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

, Yellow River, Mississippi, and arguably the

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology co ...

. In prehistory, the rivers were used as a source of fresh water and food (fish and game), as well as a place to wash and a sewer. The proximity of water moderated temperature extremes and provided a source for irrigation, stimulating the development of

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

. Most of the first civilizations developed from these river valley communities. Siting of settlements within valleys is influenced by many factors, including the need to avoid flooding and the location of river crossing points.

Notable examples

Africa

* East African Rift *

Ethiopian Rift Valley The Great Rift Valley of Ethiopia, (or Main Ethiopian Rift or Ethiopian Rift Valley) is a branch of the East African Rift that runs through Ethiopia in a southwest direction from the Afar Triple Junction. In the past, it was seen as part of a " ...

Great Rift Valley The Great Rift Valley is a series of contiguous geographic trenches, approximately in total length, that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa. While the name continues in some usages, it is rarely used in geology as it i ...

Nile Valley The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest ...

(Egypt/Sudan/Ethiopia/Uganda) *

Nugaal Valley The Nugaal Valley ( so, Dooxada Nugaal, ar, وادي نوجال), also called the Nogal Valley, is a long and broad valley located in northern Somalia and Somaliland. The Nugaal Valley is bounded to the north by the '' Sorl'', or '' Nugal Platea ...

(Somalia) *

Umba Valley Umba Valley is a geographic area in Tanzania and the world's only source of Umba sapphires. The Umba River flows through the Umba Valley. Specifically, Umba Valley is located in the north of the Usambara Mountains in the Tanga Region of Ta ...

(Tanzania) * Valley of the Kings (Egypt)

Asia

* List of valleys in India *

List of valleys in Pakistan Following is an alphabetically arranged list of valleys in Pakistan. A large part of Pakistan is within the broad Indus valley. Azad Kashmir * Bagh Valley * Bandala Valley * Banjosa Valley * Bhana Valley * Jhelum Valley * Kas Chanata ...

Beqaa Valley The Beqaa Valley ( ar, links=no, وادي البقاع, ', Lebanese ), also transliterated as Bekaa, Biqâ, and Becaa and known in classical antiquity as Coele-Syria, is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon. It is Lebanon's most important ...

(Lebanon) *

Emin Valley The Emin Valley () is located on the China–Kazakhstan border, in Central Asia. It has an area of about . Its main waterway is the Emil River. Administratively, the Emin Valley occupies areas of Tacheng Prefecture in the Xinjiang Region of n ...

(Kazakhstan) *

Ihlara Ihlara, formerly known as Xliára (Cappadocian Greek: Χλιάρα; Latin: Chliará) is a township with its own municipality in Aksaray Province, Central Anatolia, Turkey. It is situated at about from the province seat of Aksaray and near the tow ...

, Turkey *

Dang Valley The Inner Terai Valleys of Nepal comprise several elongated river valleys in the southern lowland Terai part of the country. These tropical valleys are enclosed by the Himalayan foothills, viz the Mahabharat Range and the Sivalik Hills farther sout ...

(Western Nepal) *

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 ...

(Jordan - Israel) *

Jordan Valley The Jordan Valley ( ar, غور الأردن, ''Ghor al-Urdun''; he, עֵמֶק הַיַרְדֵּן, ''Emek HaYarden'') forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. Unlike most other river valleys, the term "Jordan Valley" often applies just to ...

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Provi ...

(Nepal) *

Mahaweli The Mahaweli River ( si, මහවැලි ගඟ, literally "Great Sandy River"; ta, மகாவலி ஆறு 'mahawali gangai'', is a long river, ranking as the longest river in Sri Lanka. It has a drainage basin of , the largest in the ...

(Sri Lanka) *

Panjshir Valley The Panjshir Valley (also spelled Panjsher or Darah-I-Panjshir; Pashto/Dari: – ''Dare-ye Panjšēr''; literally ''Valley of the Five Lions'') is a valley in northeastern Afghanistan, north of Kabul, near the Hindu Kush mountain range. It is di ...

(Afghanistan) * Valleys of China ** Baligou Valley **

** Heizhu Valley **

Insukati Valley The Yinsugaiti Glacier is located in Shaksgam River basin, north-west of K2 peak on the northern slope of the Karakoram Range.J. Ehlers, Jürgen Ehlers, P.L. Gibbard, P.D. Hughes, editorsQuaternary Glaciations - Extent and Chronology: A Closer L ...

Jiuzhaigou Valley Jiuzhaigou (; ) is a nature reserve and national park located in the north of Sichuan Province in southwestern China. A long valley running north to south, Jiuzhaigou was inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1992 and a World Biospher ...

** Mutou Valley

Oceania

Barossa Valley The Barossa Valley ( Barossa German: ''Barossa Tal'') is a valley in South Australia located northeast of Adelaide city centre. The valley is formed by the North Para River. It is notable as a major wine-producing region and tourist destinati ...

(Australia) *

Bulolo Valley The Bulolo Valley is a geographical area in Bulolo District, Morobe Province Morobe Province is a province on the northern coast of Papua New Guinea. The provincial capital and largest city is Lae. The province covers 33,705 km2, with a popu ...

(Papua New Guinea) *

Capertee Valley The Capertee Valley (pronounced Kay-per-tee) is a large canyon in New South Wales, Australia, north-west of Sydney that is noted to be the second widest of any canyon in the world, exceeding The Grand Canyon. It is located kilometres north-w ...

(Australia) *

Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and s ...

(Australia) *

Hutt Valley The Hutt Valley (or 'The Hutt') is the large area of fairly flat land in the Hutt River valley in the Wellington region of New Zealand. Like the river that flows through it, it takes its name from Sir William Hutt, a director of the New Zeala ...

(New Zealand) * Macarthur, New South Wales (Australia) *

Markham Valley The Markham Valley is a geographical area in Papua New Guinea. The name "Markham" commemorates Sir Clements Markham, Secretary of the British Royal Geographical Society - Captain John Moresby of the Royal Navy named the Markham River after Sir Cl ...

(Papua New Guinea) *

Cagayan Valley Cagayan Valley ( ilo, Tanap ti Cagayan; fil, Lambak ng Cagayan), is an administrative region in the Philippines, located in the northeastern section of Luzon Island. It is composed of five Philippine provinces: Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nue ...

(Philippines) * Strath Taieri (New Zealand)

Europe

Dalen, Telemark Dalen is the administrative centre of Tokke municipality, Norway. Its population ( SSB 2005) is 801. Dalen is located on and around the delta where the river Tokke flows into the west end of the lake Bandak. Dalen is the westernmost endpoint o ...

(Telemark, Norway) * Bergensdalen (Vestland, Norway) *

Danube Valley The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

(Eastern Europe) *

Glen Coe Glen Coe ( gd, Gleann Comhann ) is a glen of volcanic origins, in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies in the north of the county of Argyll, close to the border with the historic province of Lochaber, within the modern council area of Highlan ...

(Scotland, United Kingdom) * Great Glen (Scotland, United Kingdom) *

Gudbrandsdalen Gudbrandsdalen (; en, Gudbrand Valley) is a valley and traditional district in the Norwegian county of Innlandet (formerly Oppland). The valley is oriented in a north-westerly direction from Lillehammer and the lake of Mjøsa, extending tow ...

(Oppland, Norway) *

Hallingdalen Hallingdal ( en, Halling Valley) is a valley as well as a traditional district located in the traditional and electoral district Buskerud in Viken county in Norway. It consists of six municipalities: Flå, Nes, Gol, Hemsedal, Ål and Hol. H ...

(Buskerud, Norway) *

Heddal Heddal is a village and parish in Notodden municipality in Telemark County, Norway. History The parish of ''Hitterdal'' was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). Notodden was separated from Heddal both as a ...

(Telemark, Norway) * Iron Gate (Romania/Serbia) * Lauterbrunnen Valley (Bern, Switzerland) * Loire Valley with its famous castles (France) *

Midt-Telemark Midt-Telemark is a traditional district of Norway situated in Vestfold og Telemark county. It comprises three municipalities: Bø, Sauherad and Nome. The largest population centres in the region are Bø, Ulefoss, Bjervamoen and Gvarv, of whi ...

(Telemark, Norway) *

Nant Ffrancon The Nant Ffrancon Pass in Snowdonia, North Wales, is the long steady climb of the A5 road between Bethesda, Gwynedd, and Llyn Ogwen in Conwy. The summit at is at Pont Wern-gof, about one-third of a mile beyond the eastern end of Llyn Ogwen. F ...

(Wales, United Kingdom) * Numedalen (Buskerud, Norway) *

Østerdalen Østerdalen () is a valley and traditional district in Innlandet county, in Eastern Norway. This area typically is described as the large Glåma river valley as well as all its tributary valleys. It includes the municipalities Rendalen, Alvdal, ...

(Hedmark, Norway) * Po Valley, (Italy) * Rhone Valley from the Matterhorn to Grenoble and

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of th ...

(France) * Romsdalen (Møre Og Romsdal, Norway) *

Setesdal Setesdal (; older name: Sætersdal) is a valley and a traditional district in Agder County in southern Norway. It consists of the municipalities of Bykle, Valle, Bygland, Iveland, and Evje og Hornnes. The Otra river flows through the valley o ...

(Agder, Norway) * South Wales Valleys (Wales, United Kingdom) *

Upper Rhine The Upper Rhine (german: Oberrhein ; french: Rhin Supérieur) is the section of the Rhine between Basel in Switzerland and Bingen in Germany, surrounded by the Upper Rhine Plain. The river is marked by Rhine-kilometres 170 to 529 (the s ...

Valley or

Upper Rhine Plain The Upper Rhine Plain, Rhine Rift Valley or Upper Rhine Graben ( German: ''Oberrheinische Tiefebene'', ''Oberrheinisches Tiefland'' or ''Oberrheingraben'', French: ''Vallée du Rhin'') is a major rift, about and on average , between Basel in the ...

, an old graben system. (France and Germany) * Vestfjorddalen (Norway)

North America

Caguas Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...

(Puerto Rico) * Central Valley (California) *

Coachella Valley , map_image = Wpdms shdrlfi020l coachella valley.jpg , map_caption = Coachella Valley , location = California, United States , coordinates = , width = , boundaries = Salton Sea (southeast), Santa Rosa Mountains (southwest), San Jacint ...

(California) *

Cumberland Valley The Cumberland Valley is a northern constituent valley of the Great Appalachian Valley, within the Atlantic Seaboard watershed in Pennsylvania and Maryland. The Appalachian Trail crosses through the valley. Geography The valley is bound to t ...

(Maryland/Pennsylvania) *

Death Valley Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. During summer, it is the hottest place on Earth. Death Valley's Badwater Basin is the point of lowest elevation in Nort ...

(California) * Fraser Canyon (British Columbia) * Fraser Valley (British Columbia) *

Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon (, yuf-x-yav, Wi:kaʼi:la, , Southern Paiute language: Paxa’uipi, ) is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mi ...

(Arizona, United States) *

Hell's Gate Hells Gate or Hell's Gate or Hell Gate may refer to: Places Africa * Hell's Gate National Park, Kenya Antarctica * Hells Gate Moraine, Victoria Land Asia * Nyalam Town, Tibet * A location in Nampong, Arunachal Pradesh, India * The Darvaza ga ...

(British Columbia) *

Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to Yo ...

(New York) *

Imperial Valley , photo = Salton Sea from Space.jpg , photo_caption = The Imperial Valley below the Salton Sea. The US-Mexican border runs diagonally across the lower left of the image. , map_image = Newriverwatershed-1-.jpg , map_caption = Map of Imperial ...

(California) *

Las Vegas Valley The Las Vegas Valley is a major metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the second largest in the Southwestern United States. The state's largest urban agglomeration, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Statistical Area is ...

(Nevada) * Missouri River Valley (Missouri) * Monument Valley (Arizona, Utah) * Napa Valley (California) *

Okanagan Valley The Okanagan ( ), also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is part ...

(British Columbia) *

Ottawa Valley The Ottawa Valley is the valley of the Ottawa River, along the boundary between Eastern Ontario and the Outaouais, Quebec, Canada. The valley is the transition between the Saint Lawrence Lowlands and the Canadian Shield. Because of the surrou ...

(Ontario/Quebec) * Palo Duro Canyon (Texas) *

Valley of the Sun A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

(Arizona) *

Rio Grande Valley The Lower Rio Grande Valley ( es, Valle del Río Grande), commonly known as the Rio Grande Valley or locally as the Valley or RGV, is a region spanning the border of Texas and Mexico located in a floodplain of the Rio Grande near its mouth. ...

(Texas) *

Saint Lawrence Valley The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting t ...

(Ontario/Quebec/New York) * Salt Lake Valley (Utah) * San Fernando Valley (California) *

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge ...

(Virginia/West Virginia) *

Sonoma Valley Sonoma Valley is a valley located in southeastern Sonoma County, California, in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Known as the birthplace of the California wine industry, the valley is home to some of the earliest vineyards ...

(California) *

Toluca Valley The Toluca Valley is a valley in central Mexico, just west of the Valley of Mexico (Mexico City), the old name was Matlatzinco. The valley runs north–south for about , surrounded by mountains, the most imposing of which is the Nevado de Toluca V ...

(Mexico) *

Valley of the Gods The Valley of the Gods is a scenic sandstone valley near Mexican Hat in San Juan County, southeastern Utah, United States. Part of Bears Ears National Monument, the Valley of the Gods is located north of Monument Valley across the San Juan Rive ...

(Utah) *

Valley of Mexico The Valley of Mexico ( es, Valle de México) is a highlands plateau in central Mexico roughly coterminous with present-day Mexico City and the eastern half of the State of Mexico. Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes, the Valley of Mexico wa ...

(Mexico) * Willamette Valley (Oregon) * Yosemite Valley (California)

South America

* Aburra Valley (Colombia) *

Calchaquí Valleys The Calchaquí Valley ( es, Valles Calchaquíes) is an area in the northwestern region of Argentina which crosses the provinces of Catamarca, Tucumán, Jujuy and Salta. It is best known for its contrast of colors and its unique geography that r ...

(Argentina) *

Paraíba Valley The Paraíba Valley ( pt, Vale do Paraíba) is a landform that encompasses the regions: Paraíba Valley Metropolitan Region and Northern Coast, in the state of São Paulo and Sul-Fluminense Region, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, which stands out f ...

(Brazil) * Cauca Valley (Colombia) *

Ischigualasto Ischigualasto Provincial Park ( es, Parque Provincial Ischigualasto), also called ''Valle de la Luna'' ("Valley of the Moon" or "Moon Valley"), due to its moon like appearance, is a provincial protected area in the north-east of San Juan Provinc ...

''Valley of the Moon'' (Argentina)

Antarctica

West Antarctic Rift System The West Antarctic Rift System is a series of rift valleys between East and West Antarctica. It encompasses the Ross Embayment, the Ross Sea, the area under the Ross Ice Shelf and a part of Marie Byrd Land in West Antarctica, reaching to the ...

Extraterrestrial valleys

Numerous elongate depressions have been identified on the surface of Mars, Venus, the Moon, and other planets and their satellites and are known as valles (singular: 'vallis'). Deeper valleys with steeper sides (akin to canyons) on certain of these bodies are known as

chasma In planetary nomenclature, a chasma (''plural'': chasmata ) is a deep, elongated, steep-sided depression. As of 2020, the IAU has named 122 such features in the Solar System, on Venus (63), Mars (25), Saturn's satellites Mimas (6), Tethys (2 ...

ta (singular: 'chasma'). Long narrow depressions are referred to as fossae (singular: 'fossa'). These are the Latin terms for 'valley, 'gorge' and 'ditch' respectively. The German term ' rille' or Latin term 'rima' (signifying 'cleft') is used for certain other elongate depressions on the Moon. See also: * List of valleys on Mars, * List of chasmata on Mars, * List of valleys on the Moon, *

List of largest rifts, canyons and valleys in the Solar System Following are the longest, widest, and deepest rifts and valleys in various worlds of the Solar System. List See also * List of Solar System extremes ** List of largest craters in the Solar System ** List of tallest mountains in the Solar Sys ...

References

Extraterrestrial valleys

Vallis Alpes Vallis Alpes (Latin for "Alpine Valley") is a lunar valley feature that bisects the Montes Alpes range. It extends 166 km from the Mare Imbrium basin, trending east-northeast to the edge of the Mare Frigoris. The valley is narrow at both en ...

, bisecting the Lunar Alps
Valles Marineris and Ophir Chasma

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all Eu ...

website ( English and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

) {{Authority control Erosion landforms Fluvial landforms Slope landforms Bodies of water

Formation of valleys

River valleys

Glacial valleys

Tunnel

Meltwater

Transition forms and shoulders

Hanging tributary

Trough-shaped

Box

Rift

Terms for valleys

British regional terms for valleys

Human settlement

Notable examples

Africa

Asia

Oceania

Europe

North America

South America

Antarctica

Extraterrestrial valleys

See also

References

External links

Extraterrestrial valleys