Djedi River, also called Djeddi River, Oued Djedi or Ouad-ed-Djedi ( ') is a

wadi Wadi ( ; ) is a river valley or a wet (ephemerality, ephemeral) Stream bed, riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portion ...

(river with intermittent

stream A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a strea ...

) in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

and one of the largest rivers of

Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

. It starts in the

Saharan Atlas The Saharan Atlas () is a range of the Atlas Mountain System. It is located mainly in Algeria, with its eastern end in Tunisia. Although not as tall as the High Atlas of Morocco its summits are more imposing than the Tell Atlas range that runs p ...

mountains, at elevation of about , flows for about approximately from west to east, and discharges into

Chott Melrhir Chott Melrhir, () also known as Chott Melghir or Chott Melhir, is an endorheic chott-kind of salt lake in northeastern Algeria. It is the westernmost part of a series of depressions which extend from the Gulf of Gabès into the Sahara. It was for ...

lake at about – below mean sea level, which is the lowest point of Algeria. It is fed by rains and melting snow and has a permanent flow only in its upper part. The river rises on the southern slopes of Djebel Amour, near the town of

Aflou Aflou (Berber language: Aflu, ) is a town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population s ...

, and feeds several

date palm ''Phoenix dactylifera'', commonly known as the date palm, is a flowering-plant species in the palm family Arecaceae, cultivated for its edible sweet #Fruits, fruit called dates. The species is widely cultivated across North Africa, northern A ...

groves, such as the Laghouat oasis, which largely depend on this supply; water is also taken from numerous wells dug near the river. During the

rain season The wet season (sometimes called the rainy season or monsoon season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Generally, the season lasts at least one month. The term ''green season'' is also sometimes used a ...

in winter, the river helps to rise the water level of Chott Melrhir, and in summer, the lake and lower reaches of the river dry out. The river is up to several kilometers wide, but its banks are rarely covered with water. The river bed mostly consists of

gypsum Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate Hydrate, dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk ...

and mud and bears traces of erosion associated with the large variations of the flow. Although the soil in and around the river appears arable, it is barren due to the high concentration of salt. For the same reason, the soil absorbs much condensation overnight that keeps it partly humid during much of the day. The river has numerous wadi tributaries, including Bedjran, Bicha, Mlili, Msaad and Mzi, all of those flowing from the left and none being navigable. Djedi River flows near the town of

Laghouat Laghouat () is the capital city, capital of the Laghouat Province, Algeria, south of the Algerian capital Algiers. Located in the Amour Range of the Saharan Atlas, the town is an oasis on the north edge of the Sahara Desert. It is an import ...

(population about 125,000), and the town of

Sidi Khaled Sidi Khaled is a town and commune in Algeria. Before 2019, it was located in the province of Biskra, famous for its oasis and palms. As of 2019, it is located in Sidi Khaled District in Ouled Djellal Province. The name of Sidi Khaled is related ...

(population ~40,000) stands on its left (northern) bank. The river's name is thought to be derived from the

Berber languages The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight, are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related but mostly mutually unintelligible languages spoken by Berbers, Berber communities, ...

''Irzer Idjdi'' meaning ''river of sand'' which transformed into Arabic ''Ouad Djedi'' (meaning ''the river of the goat'').

References

External links

A detailed report on Chott Melrhir lake by the Ministry of Agriculture of Algeria with the map of the area
(in French) {{Rivers of Algeria Rivers of Algeria Geography of Laghouat Province Geography of Biskra Province