Tana, Lake

Tana, Lake
Lake, Ethiopia.

The country's largest lake, it is 47 mi (76 km) long and 44 mi (71 km) wide. It is the source of the Blue Nile (see Nile River), which pours from it over a lava barrier, dropping 138 ft (42 m) to form Tisisat Falls. Coptic monasteries were built on two of its islands during the Middle Ages.

* * *

      largest lake of Ethiopia, in a depression of the northwest plateau, 6,000 ft (1,800 m) above sea level. It forms the main reservoir for the Blue Nile (Abbay) River, which drains its southern extremity near Bahir Dar. The lake's surface covers 1,418 square miles (3,673 square km), with a surrounding drainage of 4,500 square miles (11,650 square km); its maximum depth is 45 feet (14 m). The reputed source of the Blue Nile is the Little Abbay, which rises south of the lake near Mount Amedamit; it is the longest (about 85 miles [135 km]) of the lake's 60 tributaries.

      The lake was known to the ancient Greeks as Pseboa or Koloe. Coptic monasteries were built on Dak and Daga islands in the lake during the Middle Ages and were visited by Portuguese Jesuits in the 16th and 17th centuries. The Scotsman James Bruce (Bruce, James), seeking the source of the Nile, reached the southern shores of Lake Tana in 1770.

      The alluvial Dembea plains on the lake's northern shore and Fogera on the east indicate that the lake was at one time larger. Near Bahir Dar, the lake is dammed by a lava barrier over which the Blue Nile pours, dropping 138 feet (42 m) to form the spectacular Tisisat Falls (a section of which has been harnessed for hydroelectric power).

      With abundant rainfall, the lake region produces grains, oilseeds, and coffee. Cattle raising is important, as is fishing, carried on from the ancient tanqua (papyrus reed boat).

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Tana,Lake — Ta·na (täʹnə, nä), Lake also Lake Tsa·na (tsäʹ ) A lake of northwest Ethiopia. It is the largest lake in the country and the source of the Blue Nile. * * * …   Universalium

  • Tana, Lake — geographical name lake NW Ethiopia; source of the Blue Nile area 1418 square miles (3687 square kilometers) …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Tana, Lake — …   Useful english dictionary

  • lake — lake1 /layk/, n. 1. a body of fresh or salt water of considerable size, surrounded by land. 2. any similar body or pool of other liquid, as oil. 3. (go) jump in the lake, (used as an exclamation of dismissal or impatience.) [bef. 1000; ME lak(e) …   Universalium

  • Lake — /layk/, n. Simon, 1866 1945, U.S. engineer and naval architect. * * * I Relatively large body of slow moving or standing water that occupies an inland basin. Lakes are most abundant in high northern latitudes and in mountain regions, particularly …   Universalium

  • Lake San Tana — Bild gesucht  BW Geographische Lage Coleman County, Texas, USA Abfl …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Tana — steht für: (1641) Tana, Asteroid Thaana Alphabet (auch Tāna geschrieben), Alphabet der Malediven Tana steht als geographische Bezeichnung für: Antananarivo, Kurzname für die Hauptstadt Madagaskars Asow, alter Name Tana, venezianisch genuesische… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Tana — may refer to:Places*Lake Tana, Ethiopia *Tana, a municipality in Norway *Tana, short hand form of Antananarivo, capital of Madagascar *Tana or Tanais, medieval trading city on the Sea of Azov, near the modern city of Azov. *Tana Bridge, Norway… …   Wikipedia

  • Tana Qirqos — (variantly spelled Tana Kirkos; also called Tana Chirqos or Tana Chirkos, etc.; Ge ez: ጣና ቂርቆስ ṭānā ḳīrḳōs , ጣና ጪርቆስ ṭānā č̣īrḳōs ) is an island in Lake Tana in Ethiopia. It is considered a holy island, and only monks of the Ethiopian Church live …   Wikipedia

  • Tana — [tä′nə] 1. river in E Kenya, flowing southeast into the Indian Ocean: c. 500 mi (805 km) 2. Lake lake in N Ethiopia: source of the Blue Nile: c. 1,400 sq mi (3,626 sq km) …   English World dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”