Zorkul ( ps, زارکول; tg, Зоркӯл, Zārkul) is a
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
in the
Pamir Mountains
The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the wor ...
that runs along the border between
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
and
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
.
Geography
Lake Zorkul extends east to west for about 25 km. The Afghanistan–Tajikistan border runs along the lake from east to west, turning south towards
Concord Peak (5,469 m), about 15 km south of the lake. The lake's northern half lies in Tajikistan where it is protected as part of the
Zorkul Nature Reserve
Zorkul Nature Reserve is a 1610 km2 nature reserve in south-eastern Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province in eastern Tajikistan, adjoining the border with Afghanistan’s Wakhan District. The area was made a zakaznik in 1972 for the conserva ...
. Out of the lake, towards the west, flows the
Pamir River, tracing the
Afghan
Afghan may refer to:
*Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia
*Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity
**Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pash ...
-
Tajik border. It is therefore a source of the
Amu Darya
The Amu Darya, tk, Amyderýa/ uz, Amudaryo// tg, Амударё, Amudaryo ps, , tr, Ceyhun / Amu Derya grc, Ὦξος, Ôxos (also called the Amu, Amo River and historically known by its Latin name or Greek ) is a major river in Central Asi ...
or Oxus River. The
Great Pamir
The Great Pamir or Big Pamir ( Wakhi: ''Past Pamir''; Kyrgyz: ''Chong Pamir''; fa, پامیر کلان, translit=Pāmīr-e Kalān) is a broad U-shaped grassy valley or ''pamir'' in the eastern part of the Wakhan in north-eastern Afghanistan and t ...
extends to the south of the lake.
History
The lake is on the path of the
Silk Road
The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and rel ...
. It was referred to as "Great Dragon Pool" () in Chinese historical records.
The lake was once in the territory of the mir of
Wakhan
Wakhan, or "the Wakhan" (also spelt Vakhan; Persian and ps, واخان, ''Vâxân'' and ''Wāxān'' respectively; tg, Вахон, ''Vaxon''), is a rugged, mountainous part of the Pamir, Hindu Kush and Karakoram regions of Afghanistan. Wakha ...
, but the lake and river were established as the border between Russia and Afghanistan by agreement between the Russians and the British in 1895.
Although there is a probable reference to the lake in
Marco Polo
Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in '' The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...
's account, the first European known to have visited the lake was the British naval officer
John Wood in 1838. Sir-i-kol became known to the British as Lake Victoria, after the British queen, although Wood declined to name it so. It was also known as "Lake Victoria in the Pamirs" to distinguish it from the much larger
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
in Africa.
See also
*
Sarikol Range
The Sarikol Range (russian: Сарыкольский хребет; zh, s=萨雷阔勒岭, 色勒库尔山脉; tg, Рашти Куҳи Сариқӯл) is a mountain range in the Pamirs on the border of Tajikistan and the People's Republic of China ...
References
{{Badakhshan Province
Lakes of Tajikistan
Lakes of Afghanistan
Afghanistan–Tajikistan border
International lakes of Asia
Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region
Wakhan
Ramsar sites in Tajikistan
Landforms of Badakhshan Province