The document discusses the major rivers of Azerbaijan. The longest river fully within Azerbaijan is the Tartar River. However, the longest river flowing through Azerbaijan is the Kur River, which originates in Turkey and flows through Georgia before entering Azerbaijan. It then joins with the Aras River, Azerbaijan's second longest, which also originates in Turkey and forms part of the country's border with Iran. Both the Kur and Aras rivers drain into the Caspian Sea after flowing through Azerbaijan. The document provides additional details on the paths and tributaries of the Kur and Aras rivers.

2. THE RIVERS
• THE REPUBLIC OF AZERBAIJAN IS LOCATED IN THE CROSSROAD AREA OF SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE AND
SOUTHWEST ASIA KNOWN AS SOUTH CAUCASUS. AZERBAIJAN IS BORDERED BY ARMENIA, RUSSIA, IRAN,
GEORGIA, AND THE CASPIAN SEA. AZERBAIJAN'S HYDROGRAPHY BELONGS TO THE CASPIAN SEA
DRAINAGE BASIN SINCE ALL THE RIVERS OF AZERBAIJAN FLOW INTO THE BASIN. THE CASPIAN SEA DOES
NOT HAVE ANY OUTLETS TO AN OCEAN MAKING IT A CLOSED DRAINAGE BASIN. THE TARTAR RIVER IS THE
LONGEST WHOLLY IN AZERBAIJAN WHEN INCLUDING THE AUTONOMOUS NAGORNO-KARABAKH REGION.

3. THE RIVERS IN AZERBAIJAN
• HOWEVER, THE LONGEST RIVER OF THE REPUBLIC OF AZERBAIJAN IS THE KUR WHOSE RIVER SOURCE IS
IN TURKEY AND WHICH FLOWS THROUGH THE REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA, BEFORE IT ENTERS AZERBAIJAN.
THERE IT UNITES WITH THE SECOND LONGEST RIVER ARAS, WHOSE RIVER SOURCE IS ALSO IN TURKEY,
AND WHICH IS ON THE COUNTRY'S BORDER WITH IRAN. THE MAJOR TRIBUTARIES OF THE KUR RIVER ARE
THE QANIX, QABIRRI, TURYAN, AGSTAFA, SHEKIR, TERTER AND KHACHIN RIVERS. THE MAJOR
TRIBUTARIES OF THE ARAS RIVER ARE THE ARPACHAY, NAKHCHIVAN, OKHCHU, HEKERI AND
KONDELENCHAY RIVERS. THE LARGEST RIVERS WHICH ARE NOT TRIBUTARIES OF THE KUR AND ARAS
RIVERS ARE THE SAMUR, GUDYAL, VELVELE, VILESH AND LENKERAN RIVERS.

4. THE KUR RIVER
• THE NAME KUR IS RELATED TO THE NAME OF CYRUS THE GREAT, EMPEROR OF PERSIA, THE GEORGIAN
NAME OF KUR IS MT'K'VARI IN OLD GEORGIAN MT'K'UARI), EITHER FROM GEORGIAN "GOOD WATER" OR A
GEORGIANIZED FORM OF MEGRELIANTKVAR-UA"GNAW" AS IN, "RIVER THAT EATS ITS WAY THROUGH THE
MOUNTAINS“, THE NAME KUR WAS ADOPTED FIRST BY THE RUSSIANS AND LATER BY EUROPEAN
CARTOGRAPHERS. IN SOME DEFINITIONS OF EUROPE, THE KUR RIVER DEFINES THE BORDERLINE BETWEEN
EUROPE AND ASIA.
• THE RIVER SHOULD NOT BE CONFUSED WITH THE KUR RIVER, RUSSIA, A WESTWARD FLOWING
TRIBUTARY OF THE MALKA RIVER IN STAVROPOL KRAI; THE KUR RIVER NEAR KURSK, RUSSIA; OR THE
OTHER KUR RIVER NEAR KHABAROVSK, ALSO IN RUSSIA

6. MORE FACTS ABOUT KUR
• IT RISES IN NORTHEASTERN TURKEY IN A SMALL VALLEY IN THE KARS UPLANDOF THE LESSER CAUCASUS. IT FLOWS WEST, THEN NORTH AND EAST
PAST ARDAHAN, AND CROSSES INTO GEORGIA. IT ARCS TO THE NORTHWEST, THEN INTO A CANYON NEAR AKHALTSIKHE WHERE IT STARTS TO RUN
NORTHEAST IN A GORGE FOR ABOUT 75 KILOMETRES (47 MI), SPILLING OUT OF THE MOUNTAINS NEAR KHASHURI. IT THEN ARCS EAST AND STARTS TO
FLOW EAST-SOUTHEAST FOR ABOUT 120 KILOMETRES (75 MI), PAST GORI, THEN NEAR MTSKHETA, FLOWS SOUTH THROUGH A SHORT CANYON AND
ALONG THE WEST SIDE OF T'BILISI, THE LARGEST CITY IN THE REGION. THE RIVER FLOWS STEEPLY SOUTHEAST PAST RUSTAVI AND TURNS EASTWARD
AT THE CONFLUENCE WITH THE KHRAMI RIVER, CROSSING THE GEORGIA-AZERBAIJAN LINE AND FLOWING ACROSS GRASSLANDS INTO SHEMKIR
RESERVOIR AND THEN YENIKEND RESERVOIR.
• THE KUR THEN EMPTIES INTO MINGACHEVIR RESERVOIR, THE LARGEST BODY OF WATER IN AZERBAIJAN, FORMED BY A DAM NEAR ITS NAMESAKE
TOWN AT THE SOUTHEASTERN END. THE IORI (ALSO KNOWN AS QABIRRI) AND ALAZANI RIVERS FORMERLY JOINED THE KURA, BUT THEIR MOUTHS ARE
NOW SUBMERGED UNDER THE LAKE. AFTER LEAVING THE DAM THE RIVER MEANDERS SOUTHEAST WHERE IT MEETS ITS BIGGEST
TRIBUTARY TARTARCHAY IN BARDA RAYON AND CONTINUES ACROSS A BROAD IRRIGATED PLAIN FOR SEVERAL HUNDRED KILOMETERS, TURNING EAST
NEAR LAKE SARYSU, AND SHORTLY AFTER, RECEIVES THE ARAS, THE LARGEST TRIBUTARY, AT THE CITY OF SABIRABAD. AT THE ARAS CONFLUENCE IT
MAKES A LARGE ARC TO THE NORTH AND THEN FLOWS ALMOST DUE SOUTH FOR ABOUT 60 KILOMETRES (37 MI), PASSING THE WEST SIDE OF SHIRVAN
NATIONAL PARK, BEFORE TURNING EAST AND EMPTYING INTO THE CASPIAN SEA AT NEFTÇALA,

7. THE ARAZ RIVER
• THE ARAS IS A RIVER FLOWING THROUGH TURKEY, ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN, AND IRAN. IT DRAINS THE
SOUTH SIDE OF THE LESSER CAUCASUS MOUNTAINS AND THEN JOINS THE KUR RIVER, WHICH DRAINS
THE NORTH SIDE OF LESSER CAUCASUS MOUNTAINS. ITS TOTAL LENGTH IS 1,072 KILOMETRES (666 MI),
COVERING AN AREA OF 102,000 SQUARE KILOMETRES (39,000 SQ MI). THE ARAS RIVER IS ONE OF THE
LARGEST RIVERS IN THE CAUCASUS. IN THE CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY, THE RIVER WAS KNOWN TO THE
GREEKS AS ARAXES (GREEK: ΑΡΆΞΗΣ). AND ITS OLD GEORGIAN NAME IS RAKHSI (რახსი).
IN AZERBAIJANI, THE RIVER NAME IS ARAZ. IN PERSIAN AND KURDISH ITS NAME IS ‫ارس‬( ARAS) AND
IN TURKISH IT IS ARAS.

9. MORE FACTS ABOUT RIVER ARAZ
• THE ARAS RISES NEAR ERZURUM IN TURKEY AND MEETS WITH THE AKHURIAN RIVER SOUTHEAST OF DIGOR. FROM DIGOR IT
FLOWS ALONG THE CLOSED TURKISH-ARMENIAN BORDER, AND THEN RUNS CLOSE TO THE CORRIDOR THAT CONNECTS
TURKEY TO AZERBAIJAN'S NAKHCHIVAN EXCLAVE. IT THEN CONTINUES ALONG THE IRANIAN-ARMENIAN AND THE IRANIAN-
AZERBAIJAN BORDER.
• THE ZANGMAR, SARISO, GHOTOUR RIVER, HAJILAR RIVER, KALIBAR RIVER, ILGHENA RIVER, DARREH RIVER AND BALHA
RIVER ARE THE MAJOR TRIBUTARIES OF THE ARAS FROM THE SOUTH. IN TURKEY, THE GHARESO RIVER FLOWS IN FROM THE
NORTH, AND THE AKHURIAN, METSAMOR, HRAZDAN, AZAT, VEDI, ARPA, VOROTAN, VOGHDJI AND MEGHRI RIVERS JOIN IN
FROM THE ARMENIAN (NORTH) SIDE. THE KHACHIN RIVER, OKHCHI RIVER, KURI RIVER AND KANDLAN RIVER FLOW INTO THE
RIVER FROM THE AZERBAIJAN (NORTH) SIDE.

10. THANKS FOR WATCHING!