Rufiji River

Rufiji River

The Rufiji River lies entirely within the African nation of Tanzania. The river is formed by the convergence of the Kilombero and Luwegu rivers. It is approximately 600 km (375 mi) long, with its source in southwestern Tanzania and its mouth on the Indian Ocean at a point between Mafia Island called Mafia Channel. Its principal tributary is the Great Ruaha River. It is navigable for about 100 km (60 mi).

The Rufiji is about 200 km (120 mi) south of Dar-es-Salaam. The river's delta contains the largest mangrove forest in the world.

It has been proposed that the site of ancient Rhapta -- the southermost trading port mentioned in the 1st century CE "Periplus of the Erythraean Sea" -- was situated near the mouth of the Rufiji River. Professor Felix Chami has uncovered impressive evidence of Roman trade with the region in the first few centuries CE.

References

*Chami, F. A. 1999. "The Early Iron Age on Mafia island and its relationship with the mainland." "Azania" Vol. XXXIV 1999, pp. 1-10.
*Chami, Felix A. 2002. "The Graeco-Romans and Paanchea/Azania: sailing in the Erythraean Sea." From: "Red Sea Trade and Travel". The British Museum. Sunday 6 October 2002. Organised by The Society for Arabian Studies. [http://www.google.au/search?q=cache:aECfkPV1-0oJ:www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/ane/fullpapers.doc]
*Miller, J. Innes. 1969. Chapter 8: "The Cinnamon Route". In: "The Spice Trade of the Roman Empire". Oxford: University Press. ISBN 0-19-814264-1
*Ray, Himanshu Prabha, ed. 1999. "Archaeology of Seafaring: The Indian Ocean in the Ancient Period". Pragati Publications, Delhi.

External links

* [http://www.waterandnature.org/eatlas/html/af22.html Map of the Rufiji River basin at Water Resources eAtlas]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Rufiji River — ▪ river, Tanzania       river, the largest in Tanzania, East Africa, draining most of the southern part of the country and navigable for about 60 mi (100 km). Formed by the confluence of the Kilombero and the Luwegu rivers, it flows for about 175 …   Universalium

  • Rufiji — Karte Tansanias DatenVorlage:Infobox Fluss/GKZ fehlt Lag …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Rufiji District — Rufiji is one of the 6 districts of the Pwani Region of Tanzania. It is bordered to the North by the Kisarawe and Mkuranga Districts, to the East by the Indian Ocean, to the South by the Lindi Region and to the West by the Morogoro Region.The… …   Wikipedia

  • Rufiji — may refer to:* Rufiji District, in the Pwani Region of Tanzania * Rufiji River, in Tanzania * Rufiji (ethnic group), of eastern Tanzania * Rufiji language, spoken by the Rufiji people …   Wikipedia

  • Rufiji (ethnic group) — The Rufiji are an ethnic and linguistic group based in the central coast of Tanzania, near the Rufiji River. In 1987 the Rufiji population was estimated to number 200,000 [http://www.ethnologue.com/show language.asp?code=rui] …   Wikipedia

  • Rufiji — noun a) a river rising in Tanzania and flowing into the Indian Ocean. b) a district of Tanzania named after the river …   Wiktionary

  • Great Ruaha River — The Great Ruaha River is a river in south central Tanzania that flows through the Usangu wetlands and the Ruaha National Park east into the Rufiji River. The population of the basin is mainly sustained by irrigation and water related livelihoods… …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Rufiji Delta — Infobox Military Conflict conflict=Battle of Rufiji Delta partof=World War I caption=Wreck of Königsberg date= October 1914 11 July 1915 place= Rufiji Delta, German East Africa (now Tanzania) result= British victory combatant1=flagicon|German… …   Wikipedia

  • Mara River — This article describes the Mara River in Africa. For the river in northern Canada, see Mara River (Nunavut). Coordinates: 1°30′50″S 33°55′56″E / 1.51389°S 33.93222°E …   Wikipedia

  • Malagarasi River — The Malagarasi River is Tanzania s second longest river. It empties into the eastern side of Lake Tanganyika about 25 miles south of Kigoma, and is one of the lake s primary inflows. The Malagarasi pre dates Lake Tanganyika and was formerly a… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”