The Berdan (also Baradān or Baradā), the ancient Cydnus (), is a river in
Mersin Province
Mersin Province (), formerly İçel Province (), is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast between Antalya Province, A ...
, south
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
. The historical city of
Tarsus is on the river and it is therefore sometimes called the Tarsus River. Originally the watercourse passed directly through the city, but the section in Tarsus was changed to its present course in the 6th century. The river is also the location of
Tarsus Waterfall
Tarsus Waterfall is located on the northern outskirts of the city of Tarsus, not far from the motorway O.51, in southern Turkey.
Since the construction of the Berdan Dam, the water of the Tarsus River has been distributed in canals for irriga ...
.
Geography
The main headwaters are in the
Toros Mountains
The Taurus Mountains ( Turkish: ''Toros Dağları'' or ''Toroslar,'' Greek'':'' Ταύρος) are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, separating the Mediterranean coastal region from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a ...
. There are two main tributaries: Kadıncık and Pamukluk (its upper reaches are called Cehennem Deresi). Total length of the river is (including Kadıncık). Although the river is quite short, the average
discharge is , which is higher than most short rivers in the vicinity. The
drainage basin
A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...
covers . The river flows to the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
at . Just north of Tarsus there is a waterfall on the river, which is a popular picnic area for Tarsus residents.
Dams
There are four dams on Berdan. These are used both for controlling floods and for producing electricity. But the lower reaches of the river flow in an agricultural area, and because of the pollution caused by fertilisers the dams in the lower reaches are not used for drinking water.
History and mythology
The Berdan River flows in one of the warmest regions of Turkey, but its upper reaches in the Toros Mountains make the water much cooler than the surrounding streams. History has two very well known accounts of health problems caused by swimming in the river. In 333 BC
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon (; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip ...
and in 833 AD Caliph
Al-Ma'mun
Abū al-ʿAbbās Abd Allāh ibn Hārūn al-Maʾmūn (; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun (), was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. His leadership was marked by t ...
both swam in the river and both fell ill (hypothermia or pneumonia?); Al Mamun died of the illness.
In
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...
, the young
Comaetho
In Greek mythology, Comaetho (; Ancient Greek: Κομαιθώ ''Komaithṓ'' means "bright-haired") is a name that may refer to:
* Comaetho, a nymph of a spring who incessantly mingles her waters with those of the river god Cydnus, who in one pa ...
fell in love with the river-god Cydnus, and after the goddess
Aphrodite
Aphrodite (, ) is an Greek mythology, ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, procreation, and as her syncretism, syncretised Roman counterpart , desire, Sexual intercourse, sex, fertility, prosperity, and ...
transformed her into a spring, the two mixed waters forever.
Cleopatra
Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...
sailed up the river (older watercourse) and first met
Mark Antony
Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman people, Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the Crisis of the Roman Republic, transformation of the Roman Republic ...
aboard her boat.
References
{{Mersin Province
Rivers of Turkey
Rivers of Mersin Province
Tarsus, Mersin