- Zab River
Zab (Turkish: "Zap suyu", Kurdish: "زێ", Persian: زاب; "Zâb", Syriac: ܙܒܐ; "Zawa") is the name given to two separate rivers that flow through
Iran ,Iraq andTurkey to become the two principal tributaries of theTigris . The two rivers, named Greater Zab and Little Zab, were the basis of the ancient Assyrian civilisation. The name "Zab" is from the Persian word "zehâb" (زهاب), meaning "water flowing from the ground".Fact|date=February 2007The rivers are extensively used for
irrigation andhydroelectricity , with major dams on both rivers. During the spring, the Great and Little Zab are in flood, and, together, double the flow of the Tigris. The ancient city ofAssur sits on the west bank of the Tigris, about midway between the respective, east-bank confluences of the two Zabs with the Tigris.Great Zab
The Great, or Upper, Zab (Kurdish: زێ گهوره , "Zê Gewre" ,Persian زاب بزرگ; "Zâb-e Bozorg", Syriac: ܙܒܐ ܥܠܝܐ; "Zawa `elaya", Turkish: "Büyükzap Suyu", ancient Greek: Λύκος, "Lykos";
Latin : "Lycus") rises in the mountains of southeastern Turkey and flows south for 426 km (265 miles) into Iraq before joining the Tigris south of the city ofMosul at ancientCalah . It forms the approximate boundary of theKurd ish-populated region of Iraq and is used as the political boundary of theKurdish Autonomous Region . In 750 CE, the Great Zab was the scene of theBattle of the Zab between theUmayyads and theAbbasids . The yet unfinished Bakhma Dam on the Great Zab, near Shaqlawa,Arbil Governorate , could control 14.4 km³ of water forhydroelectricity andirrigation . Work on the dam began in the late 1980s, but halted in 1991 due to theGulf War and the economic sanctions imposed on Iraq by theUnited Nations afterwards.Before the
Assyrian Genocide duringWorld War I , the Great Zab was a major river for the Assyrian (also known as Chaldean and Syriac, among other names) population in the Hakkari region in modern-day southeastern Turkey. Because of this, as well as its ancient importance as a basis for the Assyrian civilisation, the Great Zab is represented on theAssyrian flag by four white streams flowing from the flag's centre.Little Zab
The Little, or Lower, Zab ( _ar. الزاب الاسفل: "al-Zāb al-Asfal", Persian: زاب کوچک; "Zâb-e Kuchak", Syriac: ܙܒܐ ܬܚܬܝܐ; "Zawa takhtaya"; ancient Greek: Καπρος, "Kapros"; Latin: Caprus) rises in northwestern Iran, in the north of
Piranshahr city and flows southwest for 402 km (250 miles) through Iraq to join the Tigris north of the town of Baiji.The Dokan Dam inIraqi Kurdistan is built on the Little Zab.
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