Kabul River

Behsood Bridge on Kabul River, Jalalabad - 30th July, 2009

Suspension bridge

Kabul River in Behsood Bridge Area, Jalalabad - 30th July, 2009

Kabul River in Behsood Bridge Area, Jalalabad - 30th July, 2009

Kabul River (Sanskrit: कुभा) (Persian: دریای کابل) (Pashto: : کابل سیند), classically called the Cophes (pronounced /ˈkoʊfiːz/), is a river that rises in the Sanglakh Range in Afghanistan, separated from the watershed of the Helmand by the Unai Pass. It is the main river in the eastern part of Afghanistan. It flows 700 km before joining the Indus River near Attock. It passes through the cities of Kabul, Chaharbagh, Jalalabad, and (flowing into Pakistan some 30 km north of the Khyber Pass) Nowshera. The major tributaries of the Kabul River are the Logar, Panjshir, Kunar, Alingar and Bara rivers.

The Kabul river itself is little more than a trickle for most of the year, but swells in summer due to melting snows. Its largest tributary is the Kunar river, which starts out as the Mastuj River, flowing from the Chiantar glacier in Chitral, Pakistan and once it flows south into Afghanistan it is met by the Bashgal river flowing from Nurestan. The Kunar meets the Kabul near Jalalabad. In spite of the Kunar carrying more water than the Kabul, the river continues as the Kabul River after this confluence, mainly for the political and historical significance of the name.

Kabul River in History

This river is attested in the Rig Veda, the earliest scripture of Hinduism, under the name Kubhā (many of the rivers of Afghanistan are mentioned in the Rig Veda). The Sanskrit word later changed to Kābul.

Biruni also called it "the River of Ghorwand".^[2]

The Kabul River later gave its name to the region and eventually to the settlement of Kabul.^[2]

See also

• Rigvedic rivers
• Swat River

References

Coordinates: 34°32′56″N 68°48′18″E / 34.54889°N 68.805°E / 34.54889; 68.805