Barada

Barada

The Barada ( _ar. بردى, _el. "Chrysorrhoas") is the main river of Damascus, the capital city of Syria. It flows through the spring of `Ayn Fijah (عين فيجة), about 27 km north west of Damascus in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains, but its source is Lake Barada, located at about 8 km from Zabadani. The Barada descends through a steep, narrow gorge before it arrives at Damascus, where it divides into seven branches that irrigate the oasis of Ghuta (الغوطة). The 'Barada' name is thought to derive from 'barid', ie 'cold'. The ancient Greek name means 'golden stream'.

Throughout the arid plateau region east of Damascus, oases, streams, and a few interior rivers that empty into swamps and small lakes provide water for local irrigation. Most important of these is the Barada, a river that rises in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains and disappears into the desert. The Barada creates the Al Ghutah Oasis, site of Damascus. This verdant area, some 370 square kilometers, has enabled Damascus to prosper since ancient times. From the mid-1980s onwards, the size of Al Ghutah was gradually being eroded as suburban housing and light industry from Damascus encroached on the oasis.

The river has suffered from severe drought in the last decades, mainly due to the lower rainfall rates and the large increase in the population in the region. It also suffers from serious pollution problems, especially in the summer, where there is almost no flow and little water in the basin.


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  • Barada — Barada, NE U.S. village in Nebraska Population (2000): 28 Housing Units (2000): 13 Land area (2000): 0.094510 sq. miles (0.244780 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.094510 sq. miles (0.244780 sq.… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Barada, NE — U.S. village in Nebraska Population (2000): 28 Housing Units (2000): 13 Land area (2000): 0.094510 sq. miles (0.244780 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.094510 sq. miles (0.244780 sq. km) FIPS… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Barāda — (»der Kalte«, Chrysorrhoas, »Goldfluß« der Griechen), syrischer Fluß, entspringt im Antilibanon und fließt südostwärts nach Damaskus. Seinen Hauptzufluß erhält er durch die starke Felsquelle Fidsche, 20 km oberhalb Damaskus, das ihm seine… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

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  • Barada — Bàrada, Miho (1889 1957) DEFINICIJA hrv. povjesničar, članci i rasprave iz razdoblja hrv. narodnih vladara (9 12. st.), posebno o agrarnim društvenim odnosima (Hrvatski vlasteoski feudalizam) …   Hrvatski jezični portal

  • Barada — 33°30′48.75″N 36°18′18″E / 33.5135417, 36.305 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Barada — Der Barada neben dem Four Seasons Hotel in Damaskus im April 2009 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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