Yarden
Jordan River | |
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Jordan River | |
![]() The Jordan River runs along the border between Jordan, the Palestinian West Bank, Israel and southwestern Syria. | |
Etymology | Hebrew: ירדן (yardén, “descender”), from ירד (yarad, “descended”) |
Native name | Arabic: نهر الأردن, Nahr al-Urdun Hebrew: נהר הירדן, Nahar ha-Yarden |
Location | |
Country | Jordan, Israel, Syria, Palestine |
Region | Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean littoral |
District | Galilee |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | |
⁃ location | Anti-Lebanon Mountain Range at Mount Hermon, Golan Heights |
⁃ elevation | 2,814 m (9,232 ft) |
Mouth | Dead Sea |
⁃ elevation | −416 m (−1,365 ft) |
Length | 251 km (156 mi) |
Discharge | |
⁃ location | Dead Sea, Jordan Rift Valley |
Basin features | |
Tributaries | |
⁃ left | Banias River, Dan River, Yarmouk River, Zarqa River |
⁃ right | Hasbani or Snir River, Iyyon Stream |
The Jordan River or River Jordan (Hebrew: נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, Nahar ha-Yarden; Classical Syriac: ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ, Arabic: نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, Nahr al-Urdunn; Ancient Greek: Ιορδάνης, Iordànes) is a 251-kilometre-long (156 mi) river in the Middle East that flows roughly north to south through the Sea of Galilee (Hebrew: כנרת Kinneret, Arabic: Bohayrat Tabaraya, meaning Lake of Tiberias) and on to the Dead Sea. Jordan and the Golan Heights border the river to the east, while the West Bank and Israel lie to its west. Both Jordan and the West Bank take their names from the river.
The river holds major significance in Judaism and Christianity since the Bible says that the Israelites crossed it into the Promised Land and that Jesus of Nazareth was baptized by John the Baptist in it.