Helmand River
Encyclopedia
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and the primarily watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
for the endorheic Sistan Basin
Sistan Basin
The Sistan Basin is an inland endorheic basin encompassing large parts of southwestern Afghanistan and southeastern Iran, one of the driest regions in the world and an area subjected to prolonged droughts...
.
The name comes from Avestan Haētumant, literally "dammed, having a dam", cognate with Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
Setumanta "having a dam", which referred to the Helmand River and the irrigated areas around it. The name was borrowed into Greek and Latin as a compound with Eastern Iranian *raha (cf. Scythian Rha "Volga"), "river". Helmand Province
Helmand Province
Helmand is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the southwest of the country. Its capital is Lashkar Gah. The Helmand River flows through the mainly desert region, providing water for irrigation....
is named after the river.
The Helmand river stretches for 1150 km (714.6 mi). It rises in the Hindu Kush
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
mountains, about 80 km (49.7 mi) west of Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
(34°34′N 68°33′E), passing north of the Unai Pass
Unai Pass
Unai Pass traverses the Sanglakh Range, an offshoot of the Hindukush, west of Kabul. It is the main road connection of Kabul with Hazarajat....
. It crosses south-west through the desert of Dashti Margo
Dashti Margo
Dashti Margo , Dasht-e Mārgow, Dasht-e Margoh, lit. "Desert of Death" is a desert region in the southern provinces of Helmand and Nimruz in Afghanistan. The desert is adjacent to the Khash Desert and Registan Desert. The area is about 150,000 km2; the elevation is some 500–700 m...
, to the Seistan marshes and the Hamun-i-Helmand
Hamun-i-Helmand
Hāmūn-e Helmand is a shallow, marshy, lake or hāmūn located in eastern Iran, near the Afghanistan border. It is fed by the Helmand River, which starts in the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan...
lake region around Zabol
Zabol
Zabol is a city in and the capital of Zabol County, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran. Zabol lies on the border with both Afghanistan and Pakistan. At the 2006 census, its population was 130,642, in 27,867 families....
at the Afghan-Iranian border (31°9′N 61°33′E).
The river remains relatively salt-free for much of its length, unlike most rivers with no outlet to the sea. This river is used extensively for irrigation, although a buildup of mineral salts has decreased its usefulness in watering crops. Its waters are essential for farmers in Afghanistan, but it feeds into Lake Hamun
Lake Hamun
Lake Hāmūn or Hamoun Oasis is a term applied to wetlands in endorheic Sīstān Basin on the on the Irano-Lake Hāmūn or Hamoun Oasis is a term applied to [[wetland]]s in [[Endorheic_basin|endorheic]] [[Sistan_Basin|Sīstān Basin]] on the on the [[Iran]]o-Lake Hāmūn or Hamoun Oasis is a term...
and is also important to farmers in Iran's southeastern Sistan and Baluchistan province
Sistan and Baluchistan Province
Sistan and Baluchestan Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southeast of the country, bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan and its capital is Zahedan....
.
A number of hydroelectric dams have created artificial reservoirs on some of the Afghanistan’s rivers including the Kajakai reservoir
Kajakai Dam
The Kajakai Dam is one of the two major hydroelectric power dams of Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. The dam is located on the Helmand River 100 miles north-west of Kandahar City. It has a dual function, to provide electricity and to irrigate some 650,000 acres of an otherwise arid land...
on the Helmand River. The chief tributary of the Helmand river is the Arghandab river
Arghandab River
Arghandab is a river in Afghanistan, about in length. It rises in the Hazarajat country north-west of Ghazni, and flows south-west falls into the Helmand below Girishk. In its lower course it is much used for irrigation, and the valley is cultivated and populous; yet the water is said to be...
(confluence at 31°27′N 64°23′E) which also has a major dam near the city of Kandahar
Kandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
.
The boundaries of Helmand has been known as kingdom of Sakastan
Sakastan
Sakastan or Sakaistan or Sakasthan is a term indicating certain regions of the South Asia where the Scythians or Sakas settled around 100 BC. Sakastan region includes southern Afghanistan; Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh provinces of Pakistan; also includes Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and...
.
Helmand River Valley
Is the valley formed by the Helmand River. It is the area along the river with the largest number of human settlements due to its proximity to the river.See also
- ArachosiaArachosiaArachosia is the Latinized form of the Greek name of an Achaemenid and Seleucid governorate in the eastern part of their respective empires, around modern-day southern Afghanistan. The Greek term "Arachosia" corresponds to the Iranian land of Harauti which was between Kandahar in Afghanistan and...
- SistanSistanSīstān is a border region in eastern Iran , southwestern Afghanistan and northern tip of Southwestern Pakistan .-Etymology:...
- ChakhansurChakhansurChakhansur is a sparsely inhabited district near Nimroz / Zaranj in Nimruz Province in Afghanistan. Its population is approximately 406...