The Orontes and the norias of Hama

The Orontes or ‘Asi is a river of Lebanon and Syria. Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... An overshot water wheel standing 42 feet high powers the Old Mill at Berry College in Rome, Georgia A water wheel (also waterwheel, Norse mill, Persian wheel or noria) is a hydropower system; a system for extracting power from a flow of water. ... The Orontes River and norias in Hama Hama (Arabic: حماه) is a city which is located on the Orontes river in central Syria, north of the city of Homs, midway between Damascus and Aleppo. ... The Murray River in Australia. ...

It was anciently the chief river of Syria, also called Draco, Typhon and Axius. The last was a native form, from whose revival, or continuous employment in native speech, has proceeded the modern name ‘Asi ("rebel"), which is variously interpreted by Arabs as referring to the stream’s impetuosity, to its unproductive channel, or to the fact that it flows away from Mecca. The Arabs (Arabic: عرب Ê»arab) are a large and heterogeneous ethnic group found throughout the Middle East and North Africa, originating in the Arabian Peninsula of southwest Asia. ... This article is about the city in Saudi Arabia. ...

The Orontes rises in the great springs of Labweh on the east side of the Bekaa valley, very near the fountains of the southward-flowing Litani, and it runs due north, parallel with the coast, falling 2000 feet (600 m) through a rocky gorge. Leaving this it expands into the Lake of Homs, having been dammed back in antiquity. The valley now widens out into the rich district of Hamah (Hamaih-Epiphaneia), below which lie the broad meadow-lands of GMb, containing the sites of ancient Apamea and Larissa. This central Orontes valley ends at the rocky barrier of Jisr al-Hadid, where the river is diverted to the west, and the plain of Antioch opens. ... The Litani river is an important waterway in southern Lebanon. ... Hama is a province of Syria with currently approximately 350,000 inhabitants. ... Apamea is located on the right bank of the Orontes River, about 55 km to the northwest of Hama, Syria, overlooking the Ghab valley. ... Larissa (Greek: Λάρισα, Lárisa) is the capital city of the Thessaly periphery of Greece, and capital of the Larissa Prefecture. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Two large tributaries from the north, the Afrin and Kara Su, here reach it through the former Lake of Antioch, which is now drained through an artificial channel (Nahr al-Kowsit). Passing north of the modern Antakya (ancient Antioch) the Orontes plunges southwest into a gorge (compared by the ancients to Tempe), and falls 150 feet (50 m) in 10 miles (16 km) to the sea just south of the little port of Samandağı (former Suedia, in antiquity Seleucia Pieria), after a total course of 150 miles (240 km). Afrin is a brand of nasal spray used to ease nasal congestion that is available over-the-counter in the United States. ... Antakya (Antiokheia, Antakiya, 36°11′N 36°9′E), located on the eastern side (left bank) of the Orontes River about 20 miles from the sea, is the capital (merkez ilçe) of Hatay Province, Turkey. ... Tempe is a variant spelling for the food Tempeh. ... Samandagi – Greek: Σέλεύχεια, transliterated as Seleucia or Seleukeia, and Σέλεύχεια Πιερία, transliterated as Seleucia Pieria or Seleukeia Pieria; also Palaeopolis, Samanda, Suedia, Zeugma, Yukari AleviÅŸik – 36°7′N 35°55′E) is a town in Hatay Province, Turkey, near the little village of Kabousiye. ...

Mainly unnavigable and of little use for irrigation, the Orontes derives its historical importance solely from the convenience of its valley for traffic from north to south; roads from the north and northeast, converging at Antioch, follow the course of the stream up to Homs, where they fork to Damascus and to Syria and the south; and along its valley have passed the armies and traffic bound to and from Egypt in all ages. On the Orontes was fought the Battle of Kadesh during the reign of Ramesses II (1304 – 1237 BC). By the Orontes the Battle of Karkar was fought in 853 BC, when the army of Assyria, led by king Shalmaneser III, encountered an allied army of 12 kings led by Hadadezer of Damascus. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Damascus by night, pictured from Jabal Qasioun; the green spots are minarets Damascus (Arabic officially دمشق Dimashq, colloquially ash-Sham الشام) is the capital city of Syria. ... Combatants New Kingdom of Egypt Hittite empire Commanders Ramesses II Muwatalli Strength ca. ... Ramesses II, Abu Simbel Ramesses II (also known as Ramesses the Great and alternatively transcribed as Ramses and Rameses) was an Egyptian pharaoh of the nineteenth dynasty. ... (Redirected from 1304 BC) Centuries: 15th century BC - 14th century BC - 13th century BC Decades: 1350s BC 1340s BC 1330s BC 1320s BC 1310s BC - 1300s BC - 1290s BC 1280s BC 1270s BC 1260s BC 1250s BC Events and Trends Cecrops II, legendary King of Athens dies after a reign... (Redirected from 1237 BC) Centuries: 14th century BC - 13th century BC - 12th century BC Decades: 1280s BC 1270s BC 1260s BC 1250s BC 1240s BC - 1230s BC - 1220s BC 1210s BC 1200s BC 1190s BC 1180s BC Events and Trends Aegeus, legendary King of Athens receives a false message that... The Battle of Karkar (or Qarqar) was fought in 853 BC when the army of Assyria, led by king Shalmaneser III, encountered an allied army of 12 kings led by Hadadezer of Damascus. ... Centuries: 10th century BC - 9th century BC - 8th century BC Decades: 900s BC 890s BC 880s BC 870s BC 860s BC - 850s BC - 840s BC 830s BC 820s BC 810s BC 800s BC Years: 859 BC 858 BC 857 BC 856 BC 855 BC 854 BC 853 BC 852 BC... An Assyrian winged bull. ... Shalmaneser III (Å ulmānu-aÅ¡arÄ“du, the god Shulmanu is pre-eminent) was king of Assyria (859 BC-824 BC), and son of the previous ruler, Ashurnasirpal II. His long reign was a constant series of campaigns against the eastern tribes, the Babylonians, the nations of Mesopotamia and Syria... Hadadezer (or Hadad-Ezer or Adad-Idri) was the king of Damascus at the time of The Battle of Qarqar. ... Damascus by night, pictured from Jabal Qasioun; the green spots are minarets Damascus (Arabic officially دمشق Dimashq, colloquially ash-Sham الشام) is the capital city of Syria. ...

The Orontes has long been a boundary marker. For the Egyptians it marked the northern extremity of Amurru, east of Phoenicia. For the Crusaders in the 12th century, the Orontes River became the permanent boundary between the Principality of Antioch and that of Aleppo. Amorite (Hebrew ’emōrî, Egyptian Amar, Akkadian Amurrū (corresponding to Sumerian MAR.TU or Martu) refers to a Semitic people who occupied the middle Euphrates area from the second half of the third millennium BC and also appear in the Tanakh. ... This article is about the medieval crusades. ... The Principality of Antioch, including parts of modern-day Turkey and Syria, was one of the crusader states created during the First Crusade. ... Old Town Aleppo viewed from the Citadel Aleppo is also the name of two townships in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. ...

See also

• Battle of Kadesh

Combatants New Kingdom of Egypt Hittite empire Commanders Ramesses II Muwatalli Strength ca. ...

External link

• SyriaLive.net page on Orontes, with photos

References

• This article incorporates text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, a publication in the public domain.