The Gediz River (, ) is the second-longest river in
Anatolia
Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
flowing into the
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...
. From its source of
Mount Murat in
Kütahya Province
Kütahya Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province in the Aegean Region, Aegean region of Turkey. Its area is 11,634 km2, and its population is 580,701 (2022). In 1990, Kütahya had a population of 578,000.
The neighboring provinces a ...
, it flows generally west for to the
Gediz River Delta in the
Gulf of İzmir.
Name
The ancient Greek name of the river was Hermos (Ἕρμος), Latinized as Hermus.
The name of the river Gediz may be related to the
Lydian proper name Cadys; Gediz is also the name of a town near the river's sources. The name "Gediz" may also be encountered as a male given name in Turkey.
Ancient geography
The Gediz is one of the two candidates for the
Hittite placename
Seha River, the other being the
Bakırçay.
The Hermos separated
Aeolia from
Ionia
Ionia ( ) was an ancient region encompassing the central part of the western coast of Anatolia. It consisted of the northernmost territories of the Ionian League of Greek settlements. Never a unified state, it was named after the Ionians who ...
, except for Ionic
Phocaea
Phocaea or Phokaia (Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek: Φώκαια, ''Phókaia''; modern-day Foça in Turkey) was an ancient Ionian Ancient Greece, Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia. Colonies in antiquity, Greek colonists from Phoc ...
, which was north of the Hermos. The valley of the Hermos was the heartland of the ancient
Lydian Empire and overlooking the valley was the Lydian capital
Sardis
Sardis ( ) or Sardes ( ; Lydian language, Lydian: , romanized: ; ; ) was an ancient city best known as the capital of the Lydian Empire. After the fall of the Lydian Empire, it became the capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian Lydia (satrapy) ...
.
Location
In
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 ...
's
Aegean Region
The Aegean region () is one of the 7 Geographical regions of Turkey, geographical regions of Turkey. The largest city in the region is İzmir. Other big cities are Manisa, Aydın, Denizli, Muğla, Afyonkarahisar and Kütahya.
Located in w ...
, Gediz River's length is second only to
Büyük Menderes River whose flow is roughly parallel at a distance of slightly more than a hundred kilometers to the south.
Gediz River rises from
Murat Mountain and
Şaphane Mountain in
Kütahya Province
Kütahya Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province in the Aegean Region, Aegean region of Turkey. Its area is 11,634 km2, and its population is 580,701 (2022). In 1990, Kütahya had a population of 578,000.
The neighboring provinces a ...
and flows through
Uşak
Uşak () is a city in the interior part of the Aegean Region of Turkey. It is the seat of Uşak Province and Uşak District.[Manisa
Manisa () is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province, lying approximately 40 km northeast of the major city of İzmir. The city forms the urban part of the districts Şehzadeler and Yunusemre, with ...]
and
İzmir Province
İzmir Province () is a province and metropolitan municipality of Turkey in western Anatolia, situated along the Aegean coast. Its capital is the city of İzmir, which is in itself composed of the province's central 11 districts out of 30 in to ...
s. It joins the sea in the northern section of the
Gulf of İzmir, close to the gulf's mouth, near the village of Yenibağarası in
Foça
Foça is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 251 km2, and its population is 34,946 (2022). The town of Foça is situated at about northwest of İzmir's city center on the Aegean Sea, Aege ...
district, south of the center of the district.
The Gediz Basin lies between northern latitudes of 38°04’–39°13’ and southern longitudes of 26°42’–29°45’. It covers 2.2% of the total area of Turkey. Larger part of the alluvial plain called under the same name as the river (''Gediz Plain'') is within the area of Manisa Province and a smaller downstream section within İzmir Province.
Environmental issues
The
Gediz Delta is important as a nature reserve and is home to rare bird species. However, the reserve suffers from water shortages due to heavy demands from irrigation projects, connected to the
Demirköprü Dam.
High level of urbanization and industrialization along its basin have caused the Gediz River to suffer severe pollution, particularly by sand and gravel quarries and leather industry. These factors contributed to the river's formerly rich fish reserves to become a thing of the past in recent years.
See also
*
Battle of the Gediz, near the river, during the Turkish War of Independence
*
Gediz (town)
*
Hermus (mythology)
References
{{Authority control
Rivers of Turkey
Landforms of Kütahya Province
Landforms of Uşak Province
Landforms of Manisa Province
Landforms of İzmir Province