The Alazani ( ) is a river that flows through the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

. It is the main tributary of the Kura in eastern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, and flows for . Part of its path forms the

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

between Georgia and

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

, before it meets the Kura at the Mingəçevir Reservoir in Azerbaijan. The river is likely the same as that referred to by classical authors

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

and Pliny as "Alazonius" or "Alazon", and may also be the Abas River mentioned by

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

(Plut. ''Pomp.'' 35) and

Dio Cassius Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history of ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...

(37.3) as the location of the Battle of the Abas (65 BCE). The Alazani originates in Upper Kakheti at the edge of the Greater Caucasus, south of the main ridge, in the northwestern part of the Akhmeta District. It flows initially to the south towards the town of Akhmeta in Upper Kakheti, then southeast through the fertile Alazani Valley of Lower Kakheti until the Azerbaijani border where it forms the border, and crosses the Azerbaijani border into its mouth in the Mingəçevir Reservoir. The Alazani valley, which is the center of the Georgian wine industry, dries up during the winter and remains so until snow melts in the spring and water flows from the mountains swell the river enormously; this regularly causes flooding. The river is mainly used for irrigation and for drinking water. In the 1990s, Chinese investors built many small

hydroelectric power plant Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

s, which use the Alazani's strong current. The river is also popular with tourists for

rafting Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...

trips. Light pollution of the river with biological substances comes from untreated sewage from the cities and other communities, as well as from the agricultural runoffs. In the districts of Kvareli and Lagodekhi, water quality is said to be quite bad. Alazani serves also as the name of different Georgian wines, among them the semi-dry brands of ''Marani Alazani Valley'' and ''Old Tbilisi Alazani''.

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* {{Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan Caucasus Rivers of Azerbaijan Rivers of Georgia (country) International rivers of Asia International rivers of Europe Azerbaijan–Georgia (country) border Border rivers

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