Jordan River

The Jordan River ( ,  ) is a river in Southwest Asia that flows through the Great Rift Valley into the Dead Sea. Many people think it is one of the world's most sacred rivers.

It is  long. Its tributaries are:
 The Hasbani (senir,  hasbani), which flows from Lebanon.
 The Banias ( hermon,  banias), that comes from a spring at Banias at the foot of Mount Hermon.
 The Dan ( dan,  leddan) with its source at the foot of Mount Hermon.
 The Ayoun ( ayoun,  ayoun), which flows from Lebanon.

The four rivers join to form the Jordan in northern Palestine, near kibbutz Sede Nehemya. The Jordan drops quickly in a 75 kilometer run to Lake Hula, which is a little below sea level in the Galilee sea. Then it drops much more in about 25 kilometers to the Sea of Galilee. The last section has less gradient, and the river begins to twist before it enters the Dead Sea, which is about 400 meters below sea level and has no outlet. Two major tributaries enter this last section from the east: the Yarmouk River and Jabbok River.

In 1964, Israel began operating a dam that takes water from the Sea of Galilee, a major Jordan River water provider, to the national water carrier. Also in 1964 Jordan built a channel that takes water from the Yarmouk River, a main tributary of the Jordan River. This caused great damage to the ecosystem. Syria has also built reservoirs that catch the Yarmouk's waters.

In modern times, 70% to 90% of the waters is used for human purposes and the flow is much smaller. Because of this, and the high evaporation rate of the Dead Sea, the sea is shrinking. All the shallow waters of the southern end of the sea have been drained in modern times, and are now salt flats.

The water from the Jordan is a very important resource to the dry lands of the area. It is a source of conflict between Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Palestine.

 In the Bible 
In the Hebrew Bible, the Jordan is referred to as the source of fertility to a large plain ("Kikkar ha-Yarden"), called "the garden of God" (Genesis 13:10). There is no regular description of the Jordan in the Bible.
The New Testament states that John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan (Matt. 3:13).

 Symbolic importance 
The Jordan is a frequent symbol in folk, gospel, and spiritual music, or in poetic or literary works.

Because the Israelites made a difficult journey from slavery in Egypt to freedom in The Promised Land, the Jordan can be a symbol of freedom. The actual crossing is the final step of the journey, which is then complete. Also, the Jordan can mean death itself, with the crossing from life into Paradise or Heaven.

 References 

 Other websites 

 SMART - Multilateral project for sustainable water management in the lower Jordan Valley
 An old map of the Jordan River from the 1800s

Category:Rivers of Israel
Category:Geography of Jordan
Category:Rivers of Syria
Category:West Bank