In which country is the river niger located. Regime of the Niger River: characteristic features. Herodotus' mistaken assumption that the Niger is a tributary of the Nile
Where does the Niger River begin and where does it flow?, the third largest river in Africa? Perhaps, in the history of world science there are not many problems that would occupy the minds for so long. The problem of Niger was born in the 5th century. BC e.Herodotus on a Journey to South Africa
Greek Herodotus, who has been called the "father of history", told about the journey from Libya to the southwest Africa five young nomads from the Nasamones tribe. The Nasamones set off on their journey, trying to penetrate as far as possible into southern Africa. They crossed the sandy deserts and reached fertile country, replete with various unfamiliar plants. But here they were captured by some short people with black skin, speaking a language they did not understand, and taken away with them. The captives passed through vast swampy areas, behind which they saw big river flowing from west to east; they noticed a large number of crocodiles in its waters. After many adventures, the young Nasamones returned home safely.Herodotus' mistaken assumption that the Niger is a tributary of the Nile
It is hardly possible to say with certainty whether the journey of the Nasamones actually took place or whether it was fiction. Based on the story of Herodotus in Europe, they first learned about the existence of a large river deep in West Africa, flowing from west to east. But at the same time, Herodotus made a mistake, understandable and justified given the then level of human knowledge about the world in which he lives, but finally refuted only in the 19th century. The Greeks had no idea about the actual size of the African continent, but they already knew the Nile quite well, in the valley of which the great civilization of Ancient Egypt developed - Greece owed a lot to it. Naturally, therefore, Herodotus suggested like a big river, which was discussed in the story he wrote down about the journey of the Nasamones, - west tributary of the Nile . And this view lasted more than two millennia. Geographic representations of Herodotus became the basis on which the maps of the interior of Africa were created, which appeared in the writings of such ancient scholars as the Roman Pliny the Elder(I century AD) and in particular the great geographer of the ancient world Claudius Ptolemy. Exactly Ptolemy's map for many centuries became a source of geographical information for the people of the Middle Ages. This map, with all its imperfections for its time, was major scientific achievement.Cultural Heritage of the Middle East
The knowledge accumulated by the scientists of antiquity, medieval Europe received mainly in the transmission of Arab scientists: on Middle East cultural heritage much better preserved than in the early medieval states of Europe, where the all-powerful Catholic Church was suspicious of most of the monuments of paganism, and the closed subsistence economy of feudal society did not really encourage the development of geography. In the Middle East at that time there were huge flourishing cities with developed handicrafts and lively trade relations.The Arabs were attracted by the geographical work of Ptolemy
It is clear that Arabs were attracted by the geographical work of Ptolemy. A native of Central Asia, a great mathematician, Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi in the ninth century revised "Geography" of Ptolemy, supplementing it with the information that the Arabs were able to accumulate by that time. A century later, some Suhrab in turn, he reworked al-Khwarizmi's "Book of the Earth's Appearance", supplementing and enriching with new features the appearance of the then known part of the globe, drawn by Ptolemy.
But neither al-Khwarizmi nor Sukhrab made any significant changes to the map of West Africa. Arab geography of that time was a "bookish" science and was based on ancient and Hellenistic theories. And Muslim merchants, by the 9th century. well mastered trade routes to Ghana - largest country in West Africa of that period, were not too interested in the nature of this part of the continent: trade routes or goods that could be obtained here absorbed all their attention. Accumulating real knowledge about the interior of Africa
But gradually, as they accumulated real knowledge about the hinterland of Africa, among Arab geographers, ideas about these areas begin to become more complicated. Of course, this does not mean that they could give a clear answer to the question of what, for example, the basins of the Nile and Niger look like. The complication of the picture was expressed mainly in the appearance (starting from the third quarter of the 10th century) in the works of Arab geographers and on the maps compiled by them, along with the familiar and well-known "Nile of Egypt" several more Nils: "Black Nile", "Zinj Nile", etc. At the same time, the majority of Arab writers, as it were, tacitly adhered to the old point of view of Herodotus: for them, the connection Nile West African With Nile of Egypt was taken for granted. In the same way, they had no doubts that the “big river” on the map of West Africa (“Countries of the Blacks”) flows from west to east.Conflicting accounts of the Niger and Sinegal rivers
But as the Muslim merchants moved south, complications arose: having become acquainted with two different rivers - Niger and Senegal, merchants, and after them, geographers begin to mix them up. For the first time such a mixture of these large West African rivers appears in the "Book of Ways and States" by the Spanish-Arab geographer and historian al-Bekri in the middle of the 11th century. Sam al-Bekri never been to west africa, he described it based on the materials of the rich archives of Cordoba, where many reports of Muslim merchants from different cities of Spain were stored. These merchants traded more than anyone else with the peoples living south of the Sahara. And al-Bekri either did not pay attention to the contradiction between different documents that spoke of a large river in ancient Ghana and adjacent countries (in some documents it was stated that the river flows from east to west, and in others - from west to east), or, as Arab historians and geographers of the Middle Ages often did, he cited the information of both of them without criticism, relying on the usual formula in such cases: “Allah knows best!” But if al-Bekri simply fixed a contradiction, then the great geographer al-Idrisi(XII century) adopted a point of view that was directly opposite to the previously prevailing one. It also mixes Niger and Senegal, but its West African "Nile" flows only from east to west. The scientific authority of al-Idrisi turned out to be great enough to make this mistake (however, one of many) set for several centuries. It could not be refuted by the quite definite evidence of a traveler Ibn Battuty(XIV century) that the "Black Nile" flows from west to east. But Ibn Battuta was the first of the authors of Arabic geographical works, who personally visited Niger. At the same time, being a man of practice, far from scientific discussions, he firmly adhered to the old point of view: "Nile of Egypt" and "Nile of blacks" are one and the same river. Of course, in the eyes of people involved in geographical science, the testimony of a simple merchant could not compete with the opinion of such a scientist as al-Idrisi.African lion saw Niger
More than that, even when a century and a half after Ibn Battuta, the regions along the Niger were twice visited by the North African traveler and scholar al-Hasan ibn Wazzaz al-Fasi, known in Europe under the name African lion, the authority of al-Idrisi remained decisive. Lion African Not only seen Niger with my own eyes; he sailed on it more than once and went down this river from Timbuktu to Djenne. It seemed that he could not but know in which direction the river was flowing! But, unfortunately, in his Description of Africa, which glorified his name, Leo Africanus did not say a single word about the direction in which the Niger flows. And this silence was taken as an agreement with al-Idrisi.
For two and a half centuries, the book of Leo Africanus remained in Europe the main source of information about the African continent.. And it never occurred to anyone to refute the opinion of al-Idrisi about the direction of the flow of the Niger. Of course, it cannot be said that the accumulation of information about the geography of the interior regions of West Africa has completely stopped. European scholars heard vague rumors about the existence somewhere far from the coast of a huge lake, to which you can go through the lands of the Hausa people, that is, through the current Northern Nigeria. And a major geographer of the late XVI century. Ortelius connected with this lake - real Lake Chad- Niger flow. On his map, the river begins south of the equator, crosses it, flows into Chad, and from there flows west, to a certain "Lake Guber." Having passed this alleged lake, the Niger flows into the Atlantic Ocean in the area actual mouth of Senegal. The performances of Ortelius are interesting, among other things, because they contain a lot of very real, but completely fantastically mixed material. Portuguese Knowledge of West Africa
Portuguese probably already at the end of the 15th century. became aware of the existence of several lakes along the upper reaches of the Niger above Timbuktu - lake Debo, Fagibin, Tanda and others. Something became known about the wealthy Hausan cities further to the east; one of the most important among them was gobir. And in 1564 on the map of the Italian Giacomo di Castaldi appears in the depths West Africa the huge “Lake Huber” (by the way, for the first time Europeans learned about Huber from the same “Description of Africa” by Leo Africanus). "Lake Guber" was regularly reproduced on their maps by everyone who was engaged in the geography of Africa until the end of the 18th century. And almost all the time continued to consider the Niger and Senegal as one river. True, there was a certain positive side to these erroneous views: already did not mix Niger with the Nile, and the very name "Niger" since the 16th century. firmly established on European maps.Expanding geographic knowledge about Africa
But in general expanding geographical knowledge about Africa in the period between the appearance in 1550 of the first Italian edition of the "Description of Africa" and the first expedition Mungo Parka in the mid 90s of the XVIII century. went much more slowly than at the beginning of the era of the great geographical discoveries of the XV - the first quarter of the XVI century. The discovery of America and the successful penetration of Europeans into the regions of the South Seas led to the fact that the leading role in the economy of Europe passed from the countries of the Mediterranean to the countries of the Atlantic coast. At the same time, the capture of almost all of North Africa by the Ottoman Empire contributed to an even greater weakening of the usual contacts between Southern Europe and the Middle East. And in Africa itself, the main ties with Europeans moved to the west coast: from here the main export product was sent to the New World - slaves for plantations and mines. Africa was turning, in the words of K. Marx, into a "reserved hunting ground for blacks."Slave trade
In search of new sources of this terrible commodity, European sailors quickly explored the Atlantic coast of Africa and mapped it quite accurately. But in the deep regions, things were different. Since slaves were brought to the coast by African rulers, there was no need for a European to move away from coastal markets and penetrate deep into the continent. Besides, slave trade was so profitable for the African rulers themselves that they would hardly have welcomed the penetration of Europeans deep into the country. Therefore, the difficulties and obstacles in the way of those who tried to move at least a little away from the coastal forts-factories were great. For a time, this position more or less suited European merchants and African leaders. But in the second half of the XVIII century. circumstances began to change rapidly. In European countries, the positions of those who sought to ban the slave trade. Many reasons contributed to this, and the desire of British merchants and industrialists to prevent the development of the economy of the former North American colonies, which was largely based on the massive use of plantation slavery, played an important role.The Industrial Revolution won in England
In the same time in England finally industrial revolution won I; The capitalist mode of production became the dominant force in the country's economy. The strengthened British bourgeoisie needed new sources of raw materials, new strongholds in all parts of the world. After the successful end for England in 1763 of the Seven Years' War the question of the possession of India was decided in favor of the British. British colonial interests moved from North America and the West Indies to the east. But this did not mean a weakening of attention to other regions of the globe. It is no coincidence that just at that time in England interest in geographical research of overseas lands was growing unusually rapidly, and among these lands Africa ranks first. But discoveries could be expected only with a certain level of organizational and financial support for research enterprises. Well, the British bourgeoisie was rich enough, and enterprising enough, and far-sighted enough to give such support to their compatriots who would dare to take on the hard work of exploring unknown lands.Creation of the African Society
In 1788 in London there was organized by the African Society(Society for Promoting the Discovery of the Interior of Africa). It is characteristic that, when announcing the creation of the society, its founders specifically drew attention to the fact that European ideas about the interior regions of Africa are almost entirely based on information provided by al-Idrisi and Leo Africanus. And in the first place among the tasks to be solved, it was put to determine where does the Niger begin and where does it flow. The report on the founding meeting of the society stated:"The course of the Niger, the places of its source and end, and even its existence as an independent river, have not yet been determined."In this way, from the end of the 18th century systematic exploration of inner Africa begins. Already in the first year of its existence, the society sent two researchers to Africa, who were supposed to cross the continent in different directions. First, John Ledyard, it was instructed to pass "from east to west along the latitude of Niger." Second, Simon Lucas, had
"cross the Sahara desert, moving from Tripoli to Fezzan",and then return to England
"through the Gambia or across the Guinean coast".Neither Ledyard nor Lucas failed to complete these tasks. The first died before he even left Cairo, and the second, having landed in Tripoli in October 1788, could not wait for the end of the war that was being waged between the nomadic tribes who lived along the main caravan road to Fezzan. And without this there was nothing to think about the journey. In July 1789 Lucas returned to England. Then the leaders of the society decided to try another route to Niger - through the Gambia (this route was shorter, although they did not yet know about it).
Houghton's trip to Africa
It was from here that he began his journey to the hinterland Africa retired major Houghton, who served for several years in the colonial troops on the coast of West Africa. In November 1790, he moved from the mouth of the Gambia to the east with the task of visiting"Cities of Timbuktu and Hausa". He had succeeded in reaching the region of Bamboo in the upper reaches of Senegal, and Houghton hoped to reach Timbuktu. But, crossing Senegal, not far from the present Malian city of Nioro, Houghton died. Scientific results of the Houghton expedition despite his death, were very important. Houghton installed:
- that the Niger flows from west to east.
- His news from Africa contained confirmation that the river in its middle course passes through the areas inhabited by the Hausa people.
Mungo Park Expedition
And only in 1795 did a young Scottish doctor offer his services to society Mungo Park. In May 1795 he went from the mouth of the Gambia the same way as Houghton. It took him more than a year to reach the city of Segou (in the modern Republic of Mali), where he first saw Niger. It was July 20, 1796.“I,” Park wrote, “with great pleasure saw the main goal of my expedition - the majestic Niger, which I thought about for so long, wide, like the Thames at Westminster, sparkling in the morning sun and flowing east”. Park was the first modern European who saw with his own eyes that the river still flows from west to east(Houghton's data was based on numerous inquiries from local residents who had a good idea of the real picture). Of course, it was a great success. However, no less successful was the fact that Park managed to return to England and in 1799 published an account of his journey.. The book was accompanied by a voluminous note by the greatest geographer of England at that time James Rennell dedicated to the scientific results of Park's journey. In it, Rennel hypothesized that the Niger flows into "vast lakes" in eastern Africa, from where excess water evaporates due to the large area of \u200b\u200bthe water table. This theory has gained almost universal acceptance.
Friedrich Hornemann's notes
However, some researchers still preferred to believe that the Niger is connected to the Nile. The flow of the Niger into the Nile was also mentioned in the diaries sent from Fezzan by Friedrich Hornemann, a young German scientist who was invited by the African Society to try to approach the Niger from the north. Latest records in the diary he kept Horneman, which contains the assumption of the connection of the Niger with the Nile, refer to April 1800, after which there was no information about Horneman. Later it became known that he managed to reach the state of Nupe in the lower Niger and died there. After the great success of the Park expedition science had only hypotheses regarding the origins of the Niger and its mouth. And only new travels could confirm or refute them. By this time, a significant change had taken place in the organization of geographical research by English scientists in Africa. Under pressure from the British bourgeoisie, interested in opening up new markets, the British government is decisively involved in planning and financing expeditions.Mungo Park's second expedition
List of government expeditions opened Mungo Park's second expedition, which set off for Africa from England in January 1805. The park should have reached the Niger and descended along it to the mouth, wherever it was. The traveler was going to repeat his route, which he took ten years ago. He intended to build a ship in Sega and go downstream (it was for this purpose that he included shipbuilders in the expedition). In total, the Park group included forty-four Europeans and one African guide. Perhaps this choice of satellites to a large extent predetermined the tragic failure of the entire enterprise: in the last letter of the Park, written by him in November 1805, it was reported that only five Europeans survived - the unusual climate and tropical diseases did their job. And although Park managed to go down the Niger for more than one and a half thousand kilometers (to the city of Busa in modern Nigeria), the expedition ended in a complete disaster: Park and three of his companions who had survived by that time died on the rapids near Busa. The expedition did not produce any scientific results. All of Park's records died with him..
Before Park's departure for the second expedition, a new hypothesis was put forward that Niger and Congo are one river(at the beginning of the 19th century, only the mouth of the third great river of Africa was known to European sailors, although the first Portuguese ships reached this mouth more than three hundred years earlier). To test the hypothesis that the Niger and the Congo are one river, the British government tried in 1816. Captain Takka's Expedition
Captain Takka's Expedition was supposed to climb up the Congo, and the second expedition, led by Major peddy, go to the Niger and go downstream. But almost all the participants of both expeditions died of illness during the journey, and these expeditions also remained inconclusive. Then in England for some time they abandoned attempts to pass to Niger from the ocean, and the northern direction again came to the fore.Ritchie and Lyon Expedition
The very next year, from Tripoli moved south Ritchie and Lyon Expedition, whose goal was to achieve Timbuktu. But she couldn't do it either. Travelers have only reached Murzuka, center Fezzan region: here Ritchie died, and Lyon, who tried to continue his journey, soon had to return due to lack of funds. However, Lyon, after questioning a large number of Africans involved in one form or another in the caravan trade across the Sahara, came to the conclusion that the waters of the Niger are connected to the great Nile of Egypt.Dr. Audney's Expedition
The first successful attempt to explore the interior of West Africa from the Mediterranean coast belongs to an expedition that set off in 1821. It was led by Dr. Audney, the expedition included Major Denham and lieutenant of the fleet Clapperton. Coming out of Tripoli, the expedition, after long months of struggling with the harsh nature and obstacles that were repaired by the warlike tribes roaming the desert, reached Lake Chad. True, this did not bring Denham and his comrades any closer to solving the Niger problem, although Denham really hoped that the solution would be found here. But already what for the first time Europeans reached Lake Chad, it was no small event. Denham remained in the state of Bornu on the shores of Chad, while Clapperton and Audney moved west, intending to explore the areas of the Hausa people and, if possible, reach Niger. But in Kano, the largest of the Hausa cities, only Clapperton arrived; Audney died on the road. In Kano, Clapperton first heard that Quorra(as Niger was called here) flows into the ocean in the Yoruba country (in the southwest of present-day Nigeria), where European ships come. True, this idea in itself was not unexpected: after all, at the beginning of the century, the German geographer Karl Reichard wrote about such a possibility. But then his point of view did not meet with support: it was believed that the path to the Gulf of Benin was blocked by a chain of granite mountains.
From Kano, Clapperton moved further west. In Sokoto, the capital of the huge sultanate just created by the Fulbe people, he was warmly received by the Sultan Muhammad Bello. In conversations with a European, the Sultan confirmed that it was really possible to get to the sea along a large river. However, on the map that Mohammed Bello drew for his guest, Niger was connected to the Nile, and in order to avoid misunderstanding, an explanation was given to the map: "This is the river Quorra that reaches Egypt and is called the Nile."Now it is difficult to say how the unexpected contradiction between the words of the Sultan and his map can be explained: admiration for the traditional ideas of Muslim geographers or sober political calculation. After all, Mohammed Bello had enough information to fear the penetration of the British into his country. The Sultan was fully aware that, in addition to losing the advantages of intermediary trade, the penetration of the guest's compatriots into his country could lead to unpleasant political consequences. Not without reason, during Clapperton's second visit to Sokoto in 1827, he was told:
"If the British are too encouraged, they will certainly come to the Sudan one by one until they are strong enough to take over the country ... as they did in India, which was wrested from the hands of the Muslims."Perhaps it was hard to say. Be that as it may, Clapperton was not allowed to Niger. He had to return to Bornu. Denham, who remained here, also collected information about the Niger and heard confirmation that this river merges with the Nile. Thus, the expedition, despite its undoubted success, did not establish the main thing - where the Niger begins and where it flows: neither the source nor the mouth of the Niger has yet been found. In 1824 Denham and Clapperton returned to their homeland. After their journey, to a certain extent, it strengthened erroneous point of view regarding the connection of the Niger and the Nile. But in essence, by this time it had already been irrefutably proven that to merge with Nilom nigga can't, no matter which direction it flows. Moreover, this was proved not speculatively, but strictly experimentally, based on a barometric measurement of the absolute height of the most likely source of the great West African river. The man who made this discovery was called
The Niger River is the most important river in West Africa. The length is 4,180 km, the basin area is 2,118 thousand km², the third in these parameters in Africa after the Nile and the Congo. It flows through the territory of Guinea, Mali, Niger, Benin, Nigeria. Source - Guinea Highlands, southeast of Guinea. Mouth of the Atlantic Ocean. The basin area is 2,117,700 km².
The Niger is fed by the waters of the summer monsoon rains. In the upper reaches, the flood begins in June and near Bamako reaches a maximum in September - October. In the lower reaches, the rise of water begins in June from local rains, in September it reaches its maximum. The average annual water flow of the Niger at the mouth is 8630 m³/s, the annual flow is 378 km³, the discharge during floods can reach 30-35 thousand m³/s.
Water supply along the current is not traditionally distributed. The lower and upper reaches of the river are located in places with high rainfall. but in the middle reaches of the river the climate is already dry.
The main tributaries of the Niger are the rivers Bani, Sokoto, Milo, Kaduna, Benue.
Niger also has an inland delta. The locals call her Masina. This vast area is located in the middle reaches of the river. It is a large heavily swampy floodplain valley. The river there has a large number of branches, oxbow lakes, lakes. Downstream, they merge into one channel. The delta is four hundred twenty-five kilometers long and eighty-seven kilometers wide.
So far, the origin of the name of the river has not been established. One of the versions says that the name of the river comes from the Latin word niger - “black”. But the indigenous people call the river in their own way. In the upper reaches, it has the name Joliba, in the middle - Egirreu, and in the lower reaches it is already Kvara. The Arabs also call it differently - Nil el-Abid, which means "Nile of Slaves".
According to one hypothesis, the name of the river comes in turn from the words "jaegerev n'egerev", which in Tamashek (one of the Tuareg languages) means "great river" or "river of rivers". So called Niger and other peoples who lived on its shores.
The source is in Guinea, then the river flows through Mali, Niger, along the border of Benin, then flows through Nigeria and flows into the Gulf of Guinea.
It originates under the name Joliba on the slopes of the Leono-Liberian Upland, flows into the Gulf of Guinea of the Atlantic Ocean, forming a delta. Main tributaries: on the right - Milo and Bani, on the left - Sokoto, Kaduna and Benue. From the sources to about 10 ° N. sh. N. flows to the north-east. in the mountains, mostly in a narrow valley, and then goes to the plains of Sudan. From Kurusa to Bamako and below Segou the valley is wide; here the river significantly increases its water content due to the confluence of tributaries; navigable. Between the years Ke Masina and Timbuktu N. is divided into many branches and flows in a wide, heavily swampy valley with an abundance of channels, oxbow lakes and lakes. This area is the inner delta of N.; here the river once flowed into a large drainless lake. In the Timbuktu region, the arms merge into one channel. Further, the river flows in an easterly direction for about 300 km along the southern edge of the Sahara desert, without receiving significant tributaries. From the village of Burem, the river turns to the southeast, below Mt. Elva it crosses the North Guinea Upland, where it receives many small tributaries. Further, up to the mouth (about 750 km), the river flows in a wide valley, accessible for navigation. Having taken from the city of Lokoja its largest tributary - the river. Benue, N. turns into a mighty stream up to 3 km wide and up to 20 m deep and more. The N. delta (24,000 km2) begins 180 km from the ocean (near the city of Aba). In terms of length, the largest branch is Nun, for navigation they use the deeper branch of Forcados. Sea tides cover most of the delta and only 35 km do not reach its top; their height on Forcados is about 1.2 m.
The Niger River flows through five countries. The main current passes through the territory of Mali. This river is the main water artery of this state. In these arid lands, without Niger, existence would be very difficult. The local population still believes that various spirits live in the river.
The Niger River originates just east of the Kong Mountains. There, the height above sea level is eight hundred and fifty meters. First, it heads north, towards the desert, then the river turns southeast, and then south. The river flows into the Gulf of Guinea of the Atlantic Ocean. A large delta with an area of twenty-five thousand kilometers is formed there. This area is covered with dense thickets and marshy.
In the upper reaches of the Niger, rapids often come across, and already in the middle reaches it has the calm character of a flat river.
In the place where the Niger merges with the tributary of the Bani, there was once a large closed lake. But today this lake is formed only during the wet season, when there is a lot of precipitation. During a flood, the total area of the delta can increase from four to twenty thousand square kilometers.
Niger is rich in fish. Carp, perch, barbel and other fish species live in the river. In the countries where the Niger flows, fishing is very developed. Fishing is often the only source of subsistence for the local population.
There is a large amount of oil in the mouth of the Niger Delta. The wise use of oil resources could help the local population out of poverty. But due to environmental pollution by oil and products of its processing, the situation is only getting worse.
The famous Niger River flows in West Africa, its length is 4180 kilometers, which means that it occupies the fourteenth place in the world. In Africa, Niger is in third place after the Congo and the Nile. At the same time, the river basin has an area of over two million square kilometers. In the Guinean Highlands, in the southeast of Guinea, the Niger water stream begins its journey. And its end falls in the Gulf of Guinea, in the Atlantic Ocean. Compare with .
Features of the Niger River
The waters of the Niger River are heading northeast towards the Sahara. From there, turn twenty kilometers from the ancient city of Timbuktu to the southeast. Only after such a journey does Niger rush to the Atlantic coast. According to experts, in ancient times, when there was no Sahara desert, two rivers flowed in this territory. They flowed into large lakes, near the city of Timbuktu. From where only one stream flowed, bringing water to the Gulf of Guinea. Conventionally, this place is called Lower Niger. Who knows ?
About five thousand years ago, the Sahara began to form. For this reason, the rivers with their sources disappeared. The lake itself also disappeared, however, a new river was formed, which consisted of small rivers, including reservoirs of West Africa. From here began the Lower Niger, the source of which was on the Atlantic coast. In other words, the great Sahara Desert radically changed the geographical features of Central and North Africa. In Guinea, the Niger River originates. On its territory you can see the Futa-Dzhallon plateau, which is in the province of Labe. A river is formed by the union of several streams. This river rushes along a narrow valley to the northeast, while on both sides it is sandwiched by mountains.
The valley expands again on the territory of Mali and becomes more calm and full-flowing between the cities of Segou and Ba-Mako. Further, up to Timbuktu itself, the water stream splits into several branches, its waters rush through the swampy flat region, where there are a large number of small lakes and channels. Note that it was here in ancient times that there was a lake where the northern rivers flowed.
The river once again forms one channel beyond the city of Timbuktu, and flows eastward along the southern reaches of the Sahara. The length of this route is approximately 320 kilometers. The river waters, having reached the village of Bureem, immediately turn to the southeast. Near the city of Ayora, the waters intersect with the state border, falling into Niger. By the way, the capital Niamey is located on the river, where one million sixty thousand people live. By the way, this city is spread on both banks.
A little further, the river creates a state border between Benin and Niger, and from there it heads to Nigeria. It is quite difficult to list the entire route of the Niger River, but it is truly unique. Experts have not been able to fully explain this phenomenon. However, this does not prevent travelers who crave adventure from coming here.
From dry facts, you can move on to interesting moments. The name of the river was formed from the Tuareg language and means "river" or "flowing water". One hypothesis claims that the name of the river came from the words "jägerev", translated as "river of rivers" or "great river". Also, other peoples who lived on the banks of the Niger called it that way. Of course, there are many assumptions, however, there is no exact information about where the name came from. By the way, a large number of different tribes live on the banks of the Niger, who adhere to ancient traditions and are engaged in animal husbandry.
Many hydroelectric facilities and dams were built on the river. However, only in some places of the river navigation is developed. This is especially true for the Niamey city region.
In winter, the Niger River freezes over. Various species of fish live in its waters, for this reason, fishing is well developed in this area. Mostly locals trade on: perches, carps and barbels. On the banks of the river is very diverse and beautiful vegetation. A real oasis is formed along the coast. Every year, thousands of tourists visit the Niger River. Let's just say that the journey is not easy, here, at every step, travelers are in danger.
Thanks to the summer monsoons, the Niger River replenishes its water reserves. Floods begin in June and last until September and October. The food of the river is interestingly distributed along the course. The lower and upper reaches are located in regions with a solid amount of precipitation. But in the middle reaches, a predominantly dry climate prevails. The main tributaries of the Niger are: Benue, Kaduna, Sokoto, Bani and Milo.
A large amount of oil has been discovered in the mouth delta of the river, it is under the protection of the military. Most of the locals are engaged in fishing throughout their lives. This area is very developed in this region. The West African stream is called relatively clean. Compared to the Nile, the Niger replenishes the ocean with less water. This is because of the rocks, which give a minimum of silt. It is also worth mentioning that the Niger River is of great economic importance for West Africa.
The well-known Niger River is the most important river in Western. The length is 4180 km, the basin area is 2118 thousand km², the third in these parameters in Africa after and. The exact origin of the name of the river is unknown and in our time there is a dispute among scientists. ( 11 photos)
2. The river receives its main water from the summer monsoon rains. The average annual water flow of the Niger at the mouth is 8630 m³/s, the annual flow is 378 km³, the discharge during floods can reach 30-35 thousand m³/s. But there are also tributaries, here are the five main ones - Milo (right), Bani (right), Sokoto (left), Kaduna (left), Benue (left).
5. It is believed that the name of the river came from the Tuareg nehier-ren- "river, flowing water." According to one hypothesis, the name of the river comes in turn from the words "jaegerev n'egerev", which in Tamashek (one of the Tuareg languages) means "great river" or "river of rivers". So called Niger and some other peoples who lived on its shores. There are many different hypotheses, but it is not known for certain where the river takes its name from.
7. In 1805, a Scottish doctor, Mungo Park, visited Niger for the second time and explored its course from Bamako to Bussang, where he was killed by local natives.
The Niger River is the largest in West Africa and the third longest on the entire continent, after the Nile and. And many thousands of years ago, two rivers flowed along its current course. From its source in the Guinean Highlands, one of them flowed into an ancient drainless lake, while the second flowed east of this place and was not connected with the first. But time dried up the lake, and these two rivers gradually changed their course, merging, they gave birth to Niger.
For a long time, the serpentine current of the Niger remained the main obstacle for researchers. There was even an assumption that the other African rivers Senegal and Gambia are nothing more than branches of the Niger, although in fact they flow to the north.
There have been many attempts to solve the mystery of the river. Since the so-called African Association was founded in 1788, the purpose of which was to study African lands in detail, including the course of the Niger: it was necessary to learn everything about the promising trade routes of Africa, and Niger goes to the Atlantic Ocean.
Less than ten years later, the river found its hero. In 1796 the Scottish traveler Mungo Park (1771-1806) reached its waters. Exploring the sources of the rivers of Senegal and the Gambia, he also reached the Niger and during his voyage discovered that the Niger had nothing to do with Senegal and the Gambia. But Park could not thoroughly study Niger either: he fell ill with dengue fever, was captured, fled, but after a relapse of a debilitating illness, he interrupted his journey along the river, returning on foot to the mouth of the Gambia, and with great difficulty reached the English trading settlement of Pisania in June 1797 . But he conveyed the collected materials. They formed the basis of a book published in 1799, which brought Mungo Park prestige in scientific circles and fame among inquisitive compatriots.
This inspired the Scot for another trip to Niger in 1805. The expedition started from the Niger Delta, was well prepared and armed. However, due to illness, heat and endless skirmishes with local tribes, Mungo Park lost most of his team (out of forty people, only eleven reached the Malian territories). In the same year, 1805, he drowned in the waters of Niger when he tried to hide from the arrows of local residents in the water. This became known only in 1808, when the diaries and letters of the brave traveler, which he sent ahead of time with his people, finally reached the addressee: the Park's envoys themselves barely survived. Although Europe already knew about the obstinate nature of the Niger, there were (and still are) a lot of extreme sports lovers who wanted to make a trip along this river. The sad fate of the Park warned real researchers... But in 1946, a significant geographical event nevertheless occurred: for the first time, a person managed to overcome absolutely all the obstacles on the way from the source of the Niger to its mouth. It was a French expedition - documentary filmmaker and connoisseur of Africa Jean Rush and his companions Pierre Ponty and Jean Soy.
Thanks to the film materials they brought from this trip, people were able to see the beauty of the hitherto mysterious river, to feel the diversity and originality of its world, bewitchingly attractive, despite all the potential dangers. 
Taking its origin under the name Joliba on the Leono-Liberian Upland, Niger rushes west to the Gulf of Guinea of the Atlantic Ocean, absorbing a lot of large and small tributaries along the way and gradually accelerating its course. At the confluence with its largest tributary - the Benue River - Niger acquires the greatest strength. Here, its width reaches three kilometers, and the depth in some areas is kept at the level of twenty meters. The Niger is navigable from Kurusa to Bamako, from the falls of Sotuba to Ansongo, and from Niamey to the mouth. The Niger Delta begins 180 km from the ocean near the city of Aba.
A real oasis is formed along the shores of Niger in the area of its inner delta Masina, in the very place where the waters of the lake that dried up over time splashed. Now this region belongs to the state of Mali (it gained independence in 1960). About half a million people live here. Most of the local settlements belong to the Dogon. Near the Bandiagara ledge one can find their small villages, consisting of adobe houses, merging with the surrounding rocky landscape, and their fields and melons stretch along the Niger coast. Niger sheltered on its shores the Fulbe tribes, who adhere to the ancient traditions of a nomadic lifestyle and animal husbandry. Living conditions here are not easy, even taking into account the proximity of the river: the wind brings hot dry air from the Sahara desert, and temperatures throughout the year can jump up to + 40 ° C. From here the river rushes on, deviating to the east and approaching the southern outskirts of the Sahara. Here, river water is an invaluable and perhaps the only source of life, including for the Malian city of Timbuktu, standing in a bend (inner delta) of Niger. Until the beginning of the 20th century. along the Niger, Timbuktu could only be reached when the water level in the river rose after the summer monsoon rains. The first European to reach this city, previously known only from descriptions, was a British officer, Major Alexander Leng, and this happened in 1825.
There are other, larger cities on the banks of the Niger (the population of Timbuktu is only a little more than 50 thousand people). Downstream of the Inner Delta lies the Malian capital of Bamako, with a population of nearly two million, Africa's fastest growing city. The difficult natural conditions of West Africa leave their mark on the appearance of this capital city. At first glance, it may seem that Bamako is not so big. The houses here are low-rise, and the streets, with a fairly high population density, are not so busy (the green minibuses of the local fixed-route taxi are sometimes found here much more than private cars).
On the banks of the great African river, the capital, Niamey, is also located. Founded in the 18th century, it really flourished only towards the end of the 19th century, during the French colonization. During the day, living in a bustle, brightly sparkling in the evening lights, this city is one of the largest African centers of trade, both retail and wholesale. And here one can observe, it seems, an ineradicable African paradox: next to the circulation of goods and money - poverty and begging.
general information
River in West Africa.
The third river in terms of length and basin area in Africa (after the Nile and the Congo).
Main tributaries: Benue, Milo, Bani, Sokoto, Kaduna.
Countries through which the Niger flows: Guinea, Mali, Niger, Benin, Nigeria.
The most important cities in the basin: Timbuktu, Bamako (Mali), Niamey (Niger), Lokoja, Onicha (Nigeria).
The most important port: Port Harcourt (Nigeria, located on the Bonny River in the Niger Delta).
Numbers
Length: 4180 km.
Pool area: 2,117,700 km2.
Delta area: 70,000 km2.
Water consumption (at the mouth): 8630 m 3 /s.
Annual flow: 378 km3.
Economy
The most important route of communication between the countries of West Africa.
Industry: hydropower (the Kainji hydroelectric complex in Nigeria, with a reservoir with an area of 600 km 2), oil production (in the Niger Delta).
Agriculture: growing oranges, bananas, legumes, corn, millet, rice, sugar cane, peanuts, sorghum, cassava, cotton; cattle breeding.
Fishing: carp, perch, barbel, captain fish and other species.
Trade is developed in coastal cities.
Climate and weather
Tropical desert in the north of the region, subequatorial in the south.
Average monthly temperatures throughout the year: from +20 to +34ºС.
Sharp diurnal temperature fluctuations are characteristic: in the morning the air temperature can be around +10ºС, and during the day it can rise to +40ºС.
Average annual rainfall: in the north of the region - less than 100 mm, in the south - up to 800 mm.
Attractions
■ Bamako (Mali): National Museum of Mali - dedicated to the history of the country since ancient times; Bamako Cathedral Mosque is one of the tallest buildings in Bamako; the VCEAO tower - the bank building, the tallest in West Africa; Palace of Culture Amado - One of the main centers for cultural events;
■ Niamey (Niger): National Museum of Niger; Nigerian zoo; city market - the largest shopping center of the Republic of Niger; Great Mosque of Niemei;
■ Kainji Lake National Park;
■ Upper Niger National Park;
■ Western Niger National Park.
Curious facts
■ To say that the Niger Basin is a densely populated area is like saying nothing. Only in the delta region of this African river, the population is about thirty-one million people.
■ The Republic of Niger is one of the largest oil suppliers among African countries. Every day, about two million barrels of black gold are mined in the Niger Delta. True, this figure is far from the limit: before production was three million barrels per day, but in recent years the country's oil industry has lost ground.
■ Steamships are rare in Niger, mostly small sailing ships.
■ Documentary filmmaker and ethnographer Jean Rouch (1917-2004), who explored the Niger in 1946, called the river a living liana that coiled around West Africa, noting the variability of its waters.
■ The most delicious fish found in the waters of Niger is the captain fish.
■ The city of Mopti in Mali, located at the confluence of the Bani River with the Niger, is called the “African Venice”. But not always, but in winter, when, after the monsoon rains, the Niger floods and Mopti is surrounded by water from all sides.