Jordan River

Jordan River
Jordan River
The Jordan River runs along the border between Jordan, the Palestinian West Bank, Israel and southwestern Syria.
Native name
Location
CountryJordan, Israel, Syria, Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory of West Bank
RegionMiddle East, Eastern Mediterranean litoral
Physical characteristics
SourceConfluence of Hasbani River and Dan River
 • locationSde Nehemia kibbutz in northern Israel
 • coordinates33°11′15″N 35°37′10″E / 33.18750°N 35.61944°E / 33.18750; 35.61944
 • elevation70 m (230 ft)
MouthDead Sea
 • elevation
−416 m (−1,365 ft)
Length251 km (156 mi)
Discharge 
 • locationDead Sea, Jordan Rift Valley
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftBanias River, Dan River, Yarmouk River, Zarqa River
 • rightHasbani or Snir River, Iyyon Stream
Map

The Jordan River or River Jordan (Arabic: نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, Nahr al-ʾUrdunn; Hebrew: נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, Nəhar hayYardēn), also known as Nahr Al-Sharieat (Arabic: نهر الشريعة), is a 251-kilometre-long (156 mi) river in the Levant that flows roughly north to south through the Sea of Galilee and drains to the Dead Sea. The river passes by or through Jordan, Syria, Israel, and the Palestinian territories.

Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights border the river to the east, while Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank lie to its west. Both Jordan and the West Bank derive their names in relation to the river. The river holds major significance in Judaism and Christianity. According to the Bible, the Israelites crossed it into the Promised Land and Jesus of Nazareth was baptized by John the Baptist in it.[1]

  1. ^ "An Interfaith Look at the Jordan River". 25 July 2013. Archived from the original on 18 April 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2017.