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 Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

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 The Gediz Delta is the river delta at the confluence of the Gediz River with the Gulf of İzmir, in İzmir Province in western Turkey. It is a 14,900 ha area of land that occupies coastal parts of Foça, Menemen, and Çiğli districts. It is one o ...

in the

Gulf of İzmir The Gulf of İzmir (), formerly known as the Gulf of Smyrna, is a gulf on the Aegean Sea, with its inlet between the Karaburun Peninsula and the mainland area of Foça. It is in length by in breadth, with an excellent anchorage. The city of İz ...

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 Seha River Land was a kingdom in Western Anatolia in the Late Bronze Age known from Hittite texts. Part of Arzawa, it was located north of Mira and south of Wilusa, and at one point controlled the island of Lazpa. History The Seha River ...

, the other being the

Bakırçay Bakırçay (, ) is a river in Turkey. It rises in the Gölcük Dağları mountains and debouches into the Gulf of Çandarlı. In antiquity, the Bakırçay was or formed part of the ''Kaikos'' or ''Caicus'' River which flowed near the city of ...

. 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 Lydia (; ) was an Iron Age kingdom situated in western Anatolia, in modern-day Turkey. Later, it became an important province of the Achaemenid Empire and then the Roman Empire. Its capital was Sardis. At some point before 800 BC, the Lydia ...

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

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 ...

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 The Büyük Menderes River ("Great Meander", historically the Maeander or Meander, from Ancient Greek: Μαίανδρος, ''Maíandros''; ), is a river in southwestern Turkey. It rises in west central Turkey near Dinar before flowing west thr ...

whose flow is roughly parallel at a distance of slightly more than a hundred kilometers to the south. Gediz River rises from

Murat Mountain Murat may refer to: Places Australia * Murat Bay, a bay in South Australia * Murat Marine Park, a marine protected area France * Murat, Allier, a commune in the department of Allier * Murat, Cantal, a commune in the department of Cantal Elsew ...

and

Şaphane Mountain Şaphane, formerly Abşeker, is a town in Kütahya Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. It is the seat of Şaphane District.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

, 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 The Gediz Delta is the river delta at the confluence of the Gediz River with the Gulf of İzmir, in İzmir Province in western Turkey. It is a 14,900 ha area of land that occupies coastal parts of Foça, Menemen, and Çiğli districts. It is one o ...

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 Below is a partial list of dams in Turkey separated by region. Aegean Region There are 45 dams in the Aegean Region, western part of Turkey. * Adıgüzel Dam, Denizli * Afşar Dam, Manisa * Akdeğirmen Dam, Afyonkarahisar * Akgedik Dam, Muğla * ...

. 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.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Turkey Landforms of Kütahya Province Landforms of Uşak Province Landforms of Manisa Province Landforms of İzmir Province

Name

Ancient geography

Location

Environmental issues

See also

References