The river Murat is also spelled Murad River, Turkish Murat Nehri. The Murat ist the major headstream of the Euphrates. It was also called Arsanias in antiquity. The river rises near Mount Ararat north of Lake Van, in eastern Turkey, and flows westward for 449 miles (722 km) through a mountainous region. There it unites with the Karasu Çayi and forms the Upper Euphrates near Malatya.