The Alazani ( ka, ალაზანი, az, Qanıx) is a river that flows through the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...

. It is the main tributary of the Kura in eastern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, and flows for . Part of its path forms the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

between Georgia and

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...

, before it meets the Kura at the Mingəçevir Reservoir. The river is likely the same as that referred to by classical authors Strabo and

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

as "Alazonius" or "Alazon", and may also be the

Abas River The Abas River (), was a river of Iberia in Asia, mentioned by Plutarch (Plut. ''Pomp.'' 35) and Dio Cassius (37.3) as crossed by Pompey, on his expedition into the Caucasian regions. Its course was east of the Cambyses (likely the modern Iori); ...

mentioned by

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

(Plut. ''Pomp.'' 35) and Dio Cassius (37.3) as the location of the

Battle of the Abas The Battle of the Abas was fought in 65 BC between the forces of the Roman Republic under Pompey Magnus and those of the Caucasian Albanian King Oroeses during the course of the Third Mithridatic War. The battle took place on a flat plain by ...

(65 BCE). The Alazani originates in the

Greater Caucasus The Greater Caucasus ( az, Böyük Qafqaz, Бөјүк Гафгаз, بيوک قافقاز; ka, დიდი კავკასიონი, ''Didi K’avk’asioni''; russian: Большой Кавказ, ''Bolshoy Kavkaz'', sometimes translat ...

, south of the main ridge, in the northwestern part of the

Akhmeta District Akhmeta ( ka, ახმეტის მუნიციპალიტეტი, ''Axmeṫis municiṗaliṫeṫi'') is the administrative – territorial unit in Eastern Georgia, in the region of Kakheti. The administrative center of Akhmeta muni ...

. It flows initially to the south towards the town

Akhmeta Akhmeta ( ka, ახმეტა) is a town in Kakheti (Georgia) and is the administrative centre of Akhmeta Municipality. It's situated on the left side of Alazani, close to the Pankisi Gorge. The town is situated at 567m. In 1966, it received th ...

, then through the fruitful

Alazani Valley The Alazani ( ka, ალაზანი, az, Qanıx) is a river that flows through the Caucasus. It is the main tributary of the Kura in eastern Georgia, and flows for . Part of its path forms the border between Georgia and Azerbaijan, before i ...

of Kakheti towards the southeast. The Alazani is the center of the Georgian wine industry. The Alazani dries up during the winter, but in the late spring, snow melt from the mountains swells the river enormously; this regularly causes flooding. The river is mainly used for irrigation and for drinking water. In the 1990s, Chinese investors built many small

hydroelectric power plant Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

s, which use the Alazani's strong current. The river is also popular with tourists for

rafting Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...

trips. A light pollution of the river with biological substances comes from untreated sewage from the cities and other communities, as well as from the agricultural areas. In the districts of

Kvareli Kvareli (, ) is a town in northeastern in Kakheti Province, Georgia. Located in the Alazani Valley, near the foothills of the Greater Caucasus Mountains, it was the birthplace of Georgian author Ilia Chavchavadze, whose one-storied house is pres ...

and

Lagodekhi Lagodekhi ( ka, ლაგოდეხი) is a town, located at the foot of the Greater Caucasus mountains between the rivers Lagodekhiskhevi and Shromiskhevi, in the historical region of Hereti (now part of Kakheti). Lagodekhi has a number of ...

, water quality is said to be quite bad. Alazani serves also as the name of different Georgian wines, among them the semi-dry brands of ''Marani Alazani Valley'' and ''Old Tbilisi Alazani''.

References

* {{Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan Caucasus Rivers of Azerbaijan Rivers of Georgia (country) International rivers of Asia International rivers of Europe Azerbaijan–Georgia (country) border Border rivers

See also

References