The Zarrineh Rud ( ) is a river in Kurdistan Province and West Azerbaijan province, Iran. It is 302 km long, arising in the

Zagros Mountains The Zagros Mountains are a mountain range in Iran, northern Iraq, and southeastern Turkey. The mountain range has a total length of . The Zagros range begins in northwestern Iran and roughly follows Iran's western border while covering much of s ...

of Kurdistan Province south of

Saqqez Saqqez (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Saqqez County), Central District of Saqqez County, Kurdistan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Etymology The name Saqqez derives from the Scythian la ...

, where it is also known as the Jaghatu River (Jaghatu Chay)."Mahabad, Iran; Iraq"
Scale 1:250,000, Series 1501 Air Sheet NJ 38-15 edition 3 February 1991, United States Defence Mapping Agency"Zarineh Rood River in Baneh"
Iran Tourism & Touring Organization Its real name is Jegatoo, a well known name among local residents over the centuries.

Names

The name ''Zarrīneh Rūd'', meaning "golden river" in

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 ...

, is historically attested by

Rashid al-Din Hamadani Rashīd al-Dīn Ṭabīb (;‎ 1247–1318; also known as Rashīd al-Dīn Faḍlullāh Hamadānī, ) was a statesman, historian, and physician in Ilkhanate Iran. According to

Vladimir Minorsky Vladimir Fyodorovich Minorsky (; – 25 March 1966) was a White Russian academic, historian, and scholar of Oriental studies, best known for his contributions to the study of history of Iran and the Iranian peoples such as Persians, Lurs, and ...

, the name Jaghātū is most likely derived from the

Mongolian Mongolian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Mongolia, a country in Asia * Mongolian people, or Mongols * Bogd Khanate of Mongolia, the government of Mongolia, 1911–1919 and 1921–1924 * Mongolian language * Mongolian alphabet * ...

word ''jaqa'', meaning "border" or "bank", with the possessive suffix ''-tu''. Minorsky wrote that such a name was fitting, since "the Jaghatu in its sweep encloses a definite geographical region". Since about the mid-20th century, the old name of Zarrineh Rud has come back into use, and the nearby Tatavu has been similarly renamed Simineh Rud, or "silver river". Minorsky reconstructed an even earlier name of the river as ''*Vālā-rūd'', from the "Balaráthō" (Βαλαράθω) given by

Theophylact Simocatta Theophylact Simocatta (Byzantine Greek: Θεοφύλακτος Σιμοκάτ(τ)ης ''Theophýlaktos Simokát(t)ēs''; ) was an early seventh-century Byzantine historiographer, arguably ranking as the last historian of Late Antiquity, writing in ...

, and also in the ''Life of Mar Yahballaha'' which refers to a river "called in Mongolian Jaghatuy and in Persian Vakya-rud".

Course

The Zarrineh rises near the Shiler Valley, an important communication route between Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau which forms a deep salient of Iraqi territory into Iran. It then flows north towards

Lake Urmia Lake Urmia is an endorheic salt lake in Iran. The lake is located between the provinces of East Azerbaijan and West Azerbaijan in Iran, and west of the southern portion of the Caspian Sea. At its greatest extent, it was the largest lake in th ...

. On the way, its course makes a long sweep to the east. It receives the Saruq River as a tributary before bending back to the west and eventually emptying into the lake. Near the lake, the Zarrineh comes very close to meeting the Simineh River, and the two might have merged to form one river at some point in the past. The Zarrineh river is dammed at

Shahid Kazemi Dam Shahid Kazemi Dam (originally named Kourosh Dam and also known as the Shahid Kazemi Bukan Dam and Bukan Dam) is a clay core dam on the Zarrineh River in the Zagros Mountains range, located near Bukan in West Azarbaijan Province, Iran. The cro ...

or Sadd-e Kurosh-e Kabir (Dam of Cyrus the Great), United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency at the border with West Azerbaijan, producing a large reservoir. There is a power plant there. The river continues north and slightly west past the cities of Shahin Dezh, Kashavar and

Miandoab Miandoab () is a city in the Central District (Miandoab County), Central District of Miandoab County, West Azerbaijan province, West Azerbaijan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Demographics Language an ...

and into

. Although it is perennial, unlike many of the streams in the Urmia Basin, its flow is still markedly seasonal with a discharge into Lake Urmia ranging from per second to only per second at the end of the dry season. Miandoab historic bridge

Tributaries

The tributaries of the Zarrineh River include: *The Saqqez Cham River with its source in the

Kileh Shin Kileh Shin (, , , also as Kīleh Shīn) is a village in Mir Deh Rural District, in the Central District of Saqqez County, Kurdistan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 517, in 100 families. The village is populated by Kurds ...

's mountain west of

, *The

Khor Khoreh River Khor (also ''Hurru'', ''Kharu'') is the second, later name used by ancient Egyptians after using Retjenu in designating the wider Syrian region, where speakers of Canaanite languages lived. It was long an outpost of ancient Egypt and is explicitl ...

which runs through

, *The Zarrineh River which has the same name with the main river and comes from ChlChama mountains located between

Divandarreh Divandarreh () is a city in the Central District of Divandarreh County, Kurdistan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Demographics Ethnicity The city is populated by Kurds Kurds (), or the Kurdi ...

and

Marivan Marivan (; ) is a city in the Central District of Marivan County, Kurdistan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Demographics Language The city is populated by ethnic Kurds and the people of Marivan sp ...

. *The Sarooq with its source in the

Takab Takab () is a city in the Central District of Takab County, West Azerbaijan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. The famous historical complex Takht-e Soleyman is situated to the North-East of the cit ...

region, and *The Morli (Leila) with its source in the

Sahand Sahand (), is a massive, heavily eroded stratovolcano in East Azerbaijan Province, northwestern Iran. At , it is the highest mountain in the province of East Azerbaijan. Sahand is one of the highest mountains in Iranian Azerbaijan, in addition ...

region.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zarrine-Rud Rivers of Kurdistan Province Landforms of Kurdistan province Landforms of West Azerbaijan province Iranian Kurdistan Saqqez County