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Nile

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Nile
river
Native labelنهر النيل, بحر الجبل, النيل, Kiyira, Áman Dawū Edit
Origin of the watercourseLake Victoria Edit
Mouth of the watercourseMediterranean Sea Edit
TributaryWhite Nile, Blue Nile Edit
Drainage basinNile basin Edit
Coordinate location15°38′25″N 32°30′20″E, 31°27′55″N 30°22′0″E Edit
Country of originBurundi Edit
DistributarySebennytic Edit

De Nile be a major north-flowing river insyd northeast Africa wich dey empty into de Mediterranean Sea. At 7,088 kilometers (4,404 mi) long, e be de longest river insyd de world, although de volume of water e dey carry be much smaller dan oda major rivers such as de Amazon anaa de Congo. De Nile play a central role insyd de environmental, economic, den cultural history of Africa for millennia.

De Nile get two major tributaries: de White Nile den de Blue Nile. De White Nile be longer wey be considered to be de headwaters, yet de Blue Nile dey contribute over twice de volume of de White Nile. De White Nile dey begin near Lake Victoria den dey flow thru Uganda den South Sudan; while de Blue Nile dey begin near Lake Tana insyd Ethiopia den dey flow into Sudan from de southeast. De two rivers dey meet at de Sudanese capital of Khartoum. From der, de Nile dey flow north thru de Nubian Desert to Egypt ein capital, Cairo, den finally dey empty into de Mediterranean Sea near Alexandria, wer e form a large river delta.

Geologically, de Nile be a young river wey e follow ein present course for about 15,000 years. Ein drainage basin dey extend across eleven countries. Chaw of de water insyd de Nile dey cam from rainfall insyd de upstream countries Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, den Uganda. Downstream countries – Egypt, Sudan, den South Sudan – be primarily desert, den withdraw river water for irrigation. Oda countries wey lie wholly anaa partly insyd de Nile Basin be Burundi, de Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, den Rwanda.

De Nile be de foundation of de Ancient Egyptian civilization, wich rely on de river for nearly every aspect of life. De annual flooding of de river deposit nutrient-rich silt along de riverbanks. Dis soil support crops wey enable a sophisticated society to thrive insyd an otherwise inhospitable desert. De Nile facilitate trade, communication, transportation, den governance. South (upstream) of de second Nile cataract lay Nubia, de historical home of de ancient Kerma culture den de Kushite Empire. Na chaw Europeans be fascinated by de Nile, den dema explorations around Lake Victoria insyd de late 19th century locate de source of de river. Among de cultures wey live along de Nile insyd de modern era be de Nilotic peoples, semi-nomadic cattle herders wey practice nomadic pastoralism, wey dey move dema cattle seasonally in response to de Nile ein floods.

Insyd de modern era, de Nile dey play a critical role insyd de economies of Egypt den Sudan, wich dey rely on am to irrigate extensive croplands. Since de late 20th century, na dem build over a dozen dams insyd de Nile Basin to provide for irrigation den to generate electricity. De dams alter de river ein annual flood cycle wey e restrict de transport of silt downstream, wey dey cause de Nile Delta to shrink. Sam dams – such as de Aswan High Dam den Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam – be de source of international political disputes about water scarcity, safety, food security, den forced displacement of peoples.

Names den etymology

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De English word "Nile" be derived from de Latin Nilus den de Ancient Greek Νεῖλος (Neilos), wich possibly originate from de Semitic term naḥal, wey dey mean 'river'.[1]

Several tributaries (smaller rivers wey merge into de Nile) den segments of de river incorporate "Nile" insyd dema names, wey dey include:

  • Albert Nile – Segment of de White Nile wey dey flow north from Lake Albert to Nimule
  • Black Nile – An alternate name give de Atbarah River
  • Blue Nile – One of de two major tributaries of de Nile
  • Kyoga Nile – Segment of White Nile from Lake Kyoga to Lake Albert[2]
  • Main Nile – Segment of de Nile downstream from de confluence of Blue Nile den White Nile[3]
  • Mountain Nile – Segment of de White Nile from de mountains of Uganda to de plains of South Sudan[4]
  • Victoria Nile – Segment of White Nile from Lake Victoria to Lake Kyoga[5]
  • White Nile – One of de two major tributaries of de Nile
  • Yellow Nile – De Wadi Howar, remnant of an ancient tributary wey dry up several thousand years ago[3]

Hydrology

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Sediment transport

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  • Gilgel Abay, Ethiopia : 7.6 million tonnes of suspended, den an additional 0.7% of bedload
  • El Deim (at de border of Ethiopia den Sudan): 140 million tonnes[6]
  • Aswan, Egypt: 0.14 million tonnes of suspended, den an additional 28% of bedload
  • Beni Sweif, Egypt: 0.5 million tonnes of suspended, den an additional 20% of bedload
  • Qena, Egypt: 0.27 million tonnes of suspended, den an additional 27% of bedload
  • Sohag, Egypt: 1.5 million tonnes of suspended, den an additional 13% of bedload

Water sources den sinks

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Sources and sinks: countries

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De following table dey summarize water balance measurements give countries within de Nile Basin. Portions of countries outsyd de Nile Basin be excluded from de values.

Key for "Source/Sink" columns
SourceDe country be a significant water source
SinkDe country be a significant water sink
NeutralDe country no be a significant source anaa sink
Country water balance (annual)[7]
Country Source/Sink
(water bal km3)		 Basin
Area km2		 Precip km3 Evap km3 Runoff km3
Burundi Neutral (2)13,24014133
DR Congo Neutral (0)19,91923230
Egypt Sink (−39)235,1084440
Eritrea Neutral (2)24,42714120
Ethiopia Source (164)363,775459295138
Kenya Source (27)49,513764923
Rwanda Neutral (1)20,67621204
South Sudan Sink (−146)617,25661275792
Sudan Sink (−81)1,226,66036444523
Tanzania Source (38)120,50616012218
Uganda Source (25)236,76330127622
Total 2,927,8432,0482,056324

Sources den sinks: geographic basins

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A map of northeast Africa. The Nile River is drawn, and there are a dozen landmarks shown on the map, at various points of the river
De water balance tables of dis article dey contain water flow information dem measure at de twelve stations dem show insyd dis map.[8]
Geographic basin water balance (annual)[8]
Basin's
downstream
station		 Source/Sink
(water bal km3)		 Basin
Area km2		 Precip km3 Evap km3 Runoff km3
1 Lake Victoria outlet Source (74)264,25935327957
2 Murchison Falls Source (15)85,513109949
3 Mongalla Neutral (1)131,6911591585
4 Malakal Sink (−159)925,160798957150
5 Khartoum Sink (−40)257,13013417414
6 Dam[9] Source (105)188,29624614270
7 Khartoum Neutral (10)118,65196729
8 Khashm el Girba Source (30)100,318956610
9 Mouth of Atbarah River Neutral (−3)104,05122251
11 Aswan Dam[9] Sink (−10)188,0112130
12 Cairo/Delta Sink (−10)145,2933120

Economy

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Hydropower

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A map of northeast Africa. The Nile is shown as a blue line. Along the Nile, locations of about ten hydropower stations are indicated.
Sam hydropower stations on de Nile. "GERD" be de Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
Major hydropower stations insyd de Nile Basin
Hydropower
station		 Nearby
landmark		 Year
dem plete		 Power
(MW, insyd 2025)		 Tributary
Aswan Low Dam Aswan, Egypt1902, 1912, 1933, 1985550[10]Main Nile
Aswan High Dam Aswan, Egypt19702,100[11]Main Nile
Merowe Dam Merowe, Sudan20091,250[12]Main Nile
Upper Atbara and Setit Showak, Sudan2017320[13]Atbarah den Tekezé
Roseires Dam Er Roseires, Sudan1966, 2013280[14]Blue Nile
Tana Beles Lake Tana, Ethiopia2010460[15]Beles River, Blue Nile
Tekezé Dam Tekezé River, Ethiopia2009300[15]Tekezé, Atbarah
Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Bameza, Ethiopia20205,150[16]Blue Nile
Fincha Fincha'a, Ethiopia1973134[15]Blue Nile (Chomen Lake)
Karuma Karuma Falls, Uganda2024600[17]Victoria Nile
Isimba Kamuli District, Uganda2019183[18]Victoria Nile
Bujagali Bujagali Falls, Uganda2012250[19]Victoria Nile
Kiira Kimaka, Uganda2003200[20]Victoria Nile
Nalubaale Jinja, Uganda1954180[21]Victoria Nile

References

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  1. ↑ Hurst 2025.
  2. ↑ Sutcliffe 2009, pp. 338, 345.
  3. 1 2 Dumont 2009, p. 4.
  4. ↑ Talling 2009, p. 390.
  5. ↑ Dumont 2009, p. 5.
  6. ↑ Sutcliffe 2009, p. 359.
  7. ↑ Senay 2014, p. 8640, Table 5.
  8. 1 2 Senay, 2014.
  9. 1 2 Senay 2014, Figure 1, Table 2.
  10. ↑ "Aswan Low Dam", Egypt MOEE.
  11. ↑ El-Shabrawy 2009, p. 149.
  12. ↑ "Merowe Dam - Sudan", Abu Dhabi Fund for Development.
  13. ↑ "Upper Atbara Dam", OPEC Fund for International Development.
  14. ↑ "Roseires Dam", IHA.
  15. 1 2 3 Hailu 2022, Table 4.
  16. ↑ Endeshaw 2025.
  17. ↑ "Karuma", Uganda Radio Network.
  18. ↑ "Isimba Power Station", UEGCL.
  19. ↑ Griffin 2018.
  20. ↑ Angurini 2021.
  21. ↑ Tumwesigye 2011, p. 10.
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