View source for Kura (South Caucasus river)

{{short description|River in the Caucasus region}}
{{about|the river in the South Caucasus|the river in North Caucasus|Kura (Russia)|other uses|Kura (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox river
| name = Kura
| native_name = 
| native_name_lang = 
| name_other = Kür, Mtkvari (Georgian: მტკვარი)
| name_etymology = <!---------------------- IMAGE & MAP -->
| image = Aragvi-Mtskheta.jpg
| image_size = 293
| image_caption = Confluence of clay-colored waters of Kura (left) with teal-colored [[Aragvi]] (right) near [[Mtskheta]]
| map = Kurabasinmap.png
| map_size = 300
| map_caption = Kura River Basin
| pushpin_map = 
| pushpin_map_size = 300
| pushpin_map_caption = 
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-zoom = 5
<!---------------------- LOCATION -->| subdivision_type1 = Countries
| subdivision_name1 = {{hlist|[[Turkey]]|[[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]|[[Azerbaijan]]}}
| subdivision_type2 = 
| subdivision_name2 = 
| subdivision_type3 = Region
| subdivision_name3 = [[Caucasus]]
| subdivision_type4 = 
| subdivision_name4 = 
| subdivision_type5 = Cities
| subdivision_name5 = {{hlist|[[Khashuri]]|[[Gori, Georgia|Gori]]|[[Borjomi]]|[[Tbilisi]]|[[Rustavi]]|[[Mingacevir]]|[[Zardab]]|[[Sabirabad (city)|Sabirabad]]|[[Neftçala]]}}
<!---------------------- PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS -->| length = {{convert|1515|km|mi|abbr=on}}<ref name="UNDP"/>
| width_min = 
| width_avg = 
| width_max = 
| depth_min = 
| depth_avg = 
| depth_max = 
| discharge1_location = directly downstream from Aras River confluence<ref name="sediment"/>
| discharge1_min = {{convert|206|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}<ref name="RDD"/>
| discharge1_avg = {{convert|443|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}<ref name="sediment"/>
| discharge1_max = {{convert|2250|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}<ref name="RDD">{{cite web|url=http://www.sage.wisc.edu/riverdata/scripts/station_table.php?qual=32&filenum=1154|title=Kura River Discharge at Surra|publisher=Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment|work=River Discharge Database|date=1930–1984|access-date=2010-03-12|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100616072318/http://www.sage.wisc.edu/riverdata/scripts/station_table.php?qual=32&filenum=1154|archive-date=2010-06-16}}</ref>
| discharge2_location = border of Georgia and Azerbaijan
| discharge2_min = 
| discharge2_avg = {{convert|378|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}
| discharge2_max = <!---------------------- BASIN FEATURES -->
| source1 = [[Lesser Caucasus]]
| source1_location = Near Kartsakhi Lake, [[Kars]], [[Turkey]]
| source1_coordinates = {{coord|40|40|31|N|42|44|32|E|display=inline}}
| source1_elevation = {{convert|2740|m|abbr=on}}<ref name="Watersheds">{{cite web|last=Guluzada|first=Lidiya|title=Kura River—Transboundary Watercourse of Caucasus|url=http://www.feem-web.it/transcat_conf/conf_papers/Guluzada.pdf|publisher=Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei|access-date=2010-03-12}}</ref>
| mouth = [[Caspian Sea]]
| mouth_location = [[Neftçala]], [[Neftchala Rayon]], [[Azerbaijan]]
| mouth_coordinates = {{coord|40.6715688305|N|42.765199064|E|display=inline, title}}
   40.67156883058258, 42.76519906444574
| mouth_elevation = {{convert|-26.5|m|abbr=on}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.caspianenvironment.org/caspian.htm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20010414045537/http://www.caspianenvironment.org/caspian.htm|url-status=usurped|archive-date=2001-04-14|title=General Background|publisher=Caspian Environment Programme|date=2004-11-06|access-date=2010-03-12}}</ref>
| progression = 
| river_system = [[Caspian Sea basin]]
| basin_size = {{convert|198300|km2|abbr=on}}<ref name="overview"/>
| tributaries_left = [[Great Liakhvi|Liakhvi]], [[Ksani]], [[Aragvi]], [[Iori (river)|Iori]], [[Alazani]]
| tributaries_right = [[Algeti]], [[Khrami]], [[Tartarchay]], [[Aras (river)|Aras]]
| custom_label = 
| custom_data = 
| extra = 
}}

The '''Kura''', also known in Georgian as '''Mtkvari''' ({{Lang-ka|მტკვარი|tr}} {{IPA|ka|ˈmt'k'ʷäɾi|}}), is an east-flowing transboundary river south of the [[Greater Caucasus|Greater Caucasus Mountains]] which drains the southern slopes of the Greater Caucasus east into the [[Caspian Sea]]. It also drains the north side of the [[Lesser Caucasus]], while its main tributary, the [[Aras (river)|Aras]], drains the south side of those mountains. Starting in northeastern [[Turkey]], the Kura flows through to [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], then into [[Azerbaijan]], where it receives the Aras as a right tributary, and finally enters the Caspian Sea. The total length of the river is {{convert|1515|km|mi}}.

People have inhabited the Caucasus region for thousands of years and first established [[agriculture]] in the Kura Valley over 4,500 years ago. Large, complex civilizations eventually grew on the river, but by 1200 CE most were reduced to ruin by natural disasters and foreign invaders. The increasing human use, and eventual damage, of the watershed's forests and grasslands, contributed to a rising intensity of [[flood]]s through the 20th century. In the 1950s, the [[Soviet Union]] started building many dams and canals on the river. Previously navigable up to [[Tbilisi]] in Georgia, the Kura is now much slower and shallower, having been harnessed by irrigation projects and [[hydroelectric]] [[power station]]s. The river is now moderately polluted by major industrial centers like Tbilisi and [[Rustavi]] in Georgia.

==Etymology==
The name Kura is related either to [[Mingrelian language|Mingrelian]] ''kur'' 'water, river' or to an ancient [[Caucasian Albanian language]] term for 'reservoir'. The [[Georgian language|Georgian]] name of Kura is ''Mt'k'vari'' (in old Georgian ''Mt'k'uari''), either from Georgian "good water" or a Georgianized form of [[Megrelian]] ''tkvar-ua'' "gnaw" (as in, "river that eats its way through the mountains").<ref name="E.M. Pospelov, 1998 p. 231">Pospelov, E.M. ''Geograficheskie nazvaniya mira'' (Moskva, 1998), p. 231.</ref> The name Kura was adopted first by the [[Russia]]ns and later by [[Europe]]an cartographers. In some definitions of Europe, the Kura defines the borderline between Europe and [[Asia]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.phespirit.info/places/nations_europe.htm |title=Countries that exist wholly or partially within geographical Europe<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2011-12-03 |archive-date=2018-05-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180523130621/http://www.phespirit.info/places/nations_europe.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the various regional languages, the river is known as: {{langx|az|Kür}}, {{lang-ka|მტკვარი}}, ''Mt’k’vari'', [[Persian language|Persian]]: Korr, {{langx|hy|Կուր}}, ''Kour'', and {{langx|tr|Kür}}.<ref name="Iranica">{{Encyclopaedia Iranica|volume=online|title=KURA RIVER|year=2021|first=Paul|last=Wordsworth|url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-iranica-online/kura-river-COM_337725}}</ref> In Greek and Latin sources of antiquity, the river was known as the ''[[Cyrus]]'' river; {{langx|grc|Κῦρος}};<ref>Allen, William Edward David. [https://books.google.com/books?id=08c9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA8&dq=Kura+river+Cyrus+Caucasus&num=100 ''A history of the Georgian people: from the beginning down to the Russian conquest in the nineteenth century''], Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1971, p.8. {{ISBN|978-0-7100-6959-7}}</ref><ref>Gachechiladze, Revaz. [https://books.google.com/books?id=Enwv_cel51EC&pg=PA18&dq=Cyrus+Kura+river+Greek ''The New Georgia'']{{Dead link|date=May 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, TAMU Press, 1996, p.18. {{ISBN|978-0-89096-703-4}}</ref> {{langx|la|Cyrus}}, as attested by [[Strabo]] and [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] respectively.<ref name="Iranica"/> [[Bundahishn]], a [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrian]] source written in [[Book Pahlavi]], refers to the river as ''Tord'' in Persian.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Shapira |first=Dan |date=1999-01-01 |title=Pahlavi References To Armenia |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/ic/3-4/1/article-p143_9.xml |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |language=en |volume=3–4 |issue=1 |pages=143–146 |doi=10.1163/157338499X00092 |issn=1573-384X|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The river should not be confused with the [[Kura (Russia)|Kura river in Russia]], a westward flowing tributary of the [[Malka (river)|Malka]] in [[Stavropol Krai]]; the [[Kur (Kursk Oblast)|Kur]] near [[Kursk]], Russia; [[Kur (Khabarovsk Krai)|Kur]] near [[Khabarovsk]], also in Russia and [[Kor River]], which is located in [[Fars province]], [[Iran]].

==Course==
[[File:Soulier, E.; Andriveau-Goujon, J. Anciens Empires Jusqua Alexandre. 1838 (BJ).jpg|thumb|left|250px|Old map showing the drainage south of the Caucasus split between the Phasis on the west and the Kura on the east]]

It rises in northeastern [[Turkey]] in a small valley in the [[Kars]] Upland<ref name="AQUASTAT">{{cite web|url=http://www.fao.org/nr/water/aquastat/countries/azerbaijan/index.stm|title=Azerbaijan: Geography, climate and population|publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations|work=AQUASTAT|access-date=2010-03-18|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619082517/http://www.fao.org/NR/WATER/AQUASTAT/countries/azerbaijan/index.stm|archive-date=2010-06-19}}</ref> of the [[Lesser Caucasus]]. It flows west, then north and east past [[Ardahan]], and crosses into [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]. It arcs to the northwest, then into a canyon near [[Akhaltsikhe]] where it starts to run northeast in a gorge for about {{convert|75|km|mi}}, spilling out of the mountains near [[Khashuri]]. It then arcs east before flowing east-southeast for about {{convert|120|km|mi}}, past [[Gori, Georgia|Gori]], then near [[Mtskheta]], flows south through a short canyon and along the west side of [[T'bilisi]], the largest city in the region. The river flows steeply southeast past [[Rustavi]] and turns eastward at its confluence with the [[Khrami]], crossing the Georgia-[[Azerbaijan]] border and flowing across grasslands into [[Shemkir reservoir]] and then [[Yenikend reservoir]].<ref name="BasinMap">{{cite map|last=Megvinetukhutsest|first=Nutsa|url=http://www.kuraarasbasin.net/EU_KuraAras_webpage/Kura_River_Basin_files/Map_KuraArasBasin%20Map.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101013014456/http://www.kuraarasbasin.net/EU_KuraAras_webpage/Kura_River_Basin_files/Map_KuraArasBasin%20Map.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2010-10-13|title=Background Map of the Kura-Aras River Basin|cartography=Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin—Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan|publisher=European Union|access-date=2010-03-12}}</ref>

The Kura then empties into [[Mingachevir reservoir]], the largest body of water in Azerbaijan, formed by a dam near its [[Mingachevir|namesake town]] at the southeastern end. The rivers [[Iori (river)|Iori]] (also known as [[Qabirri]]) and [[Alazani]] formerly joined the Kura, but their mouths are now submerged under the lake. After leaving the dam, the river meanders southeast where it meets its biggest tributary [[Tartarchay]] in [[Barda Rayon]] and continues across a broad [[irrigated]] plain for several hundred kilometers, turning east near [[Lake Sarysu]], and shortly after, receives the [[Aras (river)|Aras]], the largest tributary, at the city of [[Sabirabad (city)|Sabirabad]]. At the Aras confluence it makes a large arc to the north and then flows almost due south for about {{convert|60|km|mi}}, passing the west side of [[Shirvan National Park]], before turning east and emptying into the Caspian Sea at [[Neftçala]].<ref name="BasinMap"/>

==Basin==
[[Image:Atskuri fortress, Georgia-2.jpg|thumb|left|Kura making its way through mountains, as viewed from the walls of [[Atskuri Fortress]] in Georgia.]]

Most of the Kura runs in the broad and deep valley between the [[Greater Caucasus]] and Lesser Caucasus Mountains, and the major tributary, the Aras, drains most of the southern Caucasus and the mountain ranges of the extreme northern [[Middle East]]. The entirety of [[Armenia]] and most of Azerbaijan are drained by the river. Most of the elevation change in the river occurs within the first {{convert|200|km|mi}}. While the river starts at {{convert|2740|m|ft}} above sea level, the elevation is {{convert|693|m|ft}} by the time it reaches Khashuri in central Georgia, just out of the mountains, and only {{convert|291|m|ft}} when it reaches Azerbaijan.<ref name="GE">Derived from [[Google Earth]]</ref>
[[Image:Mtkvari in Gori.jpg|thumb|right|The Kura (Mtkvari) near [[Gori, Georgia|Gori]], Georgia]]
The lower part of the river flows through the [[Kura-Aras Lowland]], which covers most of central Azerbaijan and abuts the Caspian Sea. The Kura is the third largest, after the [[Volga]] and [[Ural (river)|Ural]], of the rivers that flow into the Caspian. Its [[River delta|delta]] is the fourth largest among the rivers that flow into the Caspian Sea,<ref name="sediment">{{cite web|url=http://iahs.info/redbooks/a075/iahs_075_0391.pdf|title=Drift Balance of the Kura River in its Lower Course|last=Rustanov|first=S. G.|series=Symposium on River Morphology|year=1967|work=Institute of Geography of the Academy of Sciences of the Azerbaijan SSR|publisher=General Assembly of Bern. Commission of Surface Waters|access-date=2010-04-05}}</ref> and is divided into three main sections, or "sleeves", composed of sediment the river deposited during different periods of time. Before 1998, the river flowed all the way to the tip of the delta, where it discharged into the Caspian. In that year,  the river escaped its channel and started to flow off to the west, leaving the last few kilometers abandoned. The course change is believed to be the result of a rise in the level of the Caspian Sea coupled with a major flood of the Kura.<ref>{{cite web|last=Mamedova|first=N.|url=http://www.isprs.org/publications/related/ISRSE/html/papers/990.pdf|title=Using Spaceborne Data and GIS-technology for Research of Coastal Zone in Azerbaijan|publisher=International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing|work=Department of General Geography, Baku State University, Azerbaijan|access-date=2010-03-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717195900/http://www.isprs.org/publications/related/ISRSE/html/papers/990.pdf|archive-date=2011-07-17|url-status=dead}}</ref>

About {{convert|174|km|mi}} of the river is in Turkey, {{convert|435|km|mi}} in Georgia, and {{convert|906|km|mi}} in Azerbaijan.<ref name="AQUASTAT"/><ref name="wateruse">{{cite web|last1=Mustafaev|first1=Islam|last2=Mammadov|first2=Vagif|url=http://www.docstoc.com/docs/11383693/Length-Of-Rivers|title=Problems of Transboundary Water Management in Azerbaijan|publisher=docstoc|work=Institute of Radiation Problems, Institute of Geology|access-date=2010-03-13}}</ref>
About {{convert|5500|km2|sqmi}} of the catchment is in Turkey, {{convert|29743|km2|sqmi}} in Armenia,<ref>Armenia is entirely in the Kura River catchment</ref> {{convert|46237|km2|sqmi}} in Georgia, {{convert|56290|km2|sqmi}} in Azerbaijan,<ref>''Problems of Transboundary Water Management in Azerbaijan'' report states that 65% of Azerbaijan is drained by the Kura</ref> and about {{convert|63500|km2|sqmi}} are in Iran. At the confluence with the Aras River, the drainage area of the tributary is actually larger than the Kura by about 4%, and it is also longer.<ref name="wateruse"/><ref name="presentation">{{cite web |last1=Mammadov |first1=R. |last2=Ismatova |first2=Kh. |last3=Verdiyev |first3=R. |url=http://www.unece.org/env/water/meetings/flood/workshop%202009/presentations/session%203/Mammadov_Kura.pdf|title=Integrated Water Resources Management As Basis for Flood Prevention in the Kura River Basin|work=Azerbaijan Geographical Society, Azerbaijan Aerospace Agency |access-date=2010-03-12}}</ref> However, because of the more arid conditions and equally intensive water use, the discharge of the Aras is much less than the Kura, so downstream of the confluence the river is still called the Kura. About 52% of the river's flow comes from snowmelt and glaciers, 30% comes from groundwater seepage, and roughly 18% from precipitation. Because of high water use, many of the smaller tributaries of the Kura no longer reach the river, instead disappearing in the plain many kilometers from their original mouths.<ref name="wateruse"/>

===Tributaries===
 
The following rivers are tributaries of the Kura, from source to mouth:
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*[[Aghstafa (river)|Aghstafa]] (right)
*[[Alazani]] (left)
*[[Algeti]] (right)
*[[Aragvi]] (left)
*[[Aras (river)|Aras]] (right)
*[[Girdymanchay]] (left)
*[[Great Liakhvi]] (left)
*[[Iori (river)|Iori]] (left)
*[[Khrami]] (right)
*[[Ksani]] (left)
*[[Kurekchay]] (right)
*[[Paravani]] (right)
*[[Qarqarçay]] (right)
*[[Shamkirchay]] (right)
*[[Tartar (river)|Tartar]] (right)
*[[Tedzami]] (right)
*[[Turyan]] (left)
*[[Vere (river)|Vere]] (right)
{{div col end}}

==Ecology==
[[Image:تفلیس Tbilisi თბილისი 39.jpg|thumb|right|The Kura flowing along the [[Metekhi]] neighborhood of [[Tbilisi]], Georgia]]
[[Steppe]] characterizes the arid reaches of the Kura catchment, while [[meadows]] are often found in the alpine areas. The Kura catchment area is considered as part of the Kura-South Caspian Sea Drainages [[ecoregion]]. Some portions of the river flow through a semi-[[desert]] environment. [[Forest cover]] is sparse. Almost 60 species of fish inhabit the Kura and its tributaries. Some common families include [[loach]], [[Alburnus|bleak]], [[trout]] and [[nase]], and many of these fish are [[Endemism|endemic]] to the region. Among rivers of the Caucasus, the Kura has the largest number of endemic species. The upper section of the river supports much more biodiversity than the lower half, which is typically more [[Turbidity|turbid]] and polluted. This pattern is also apparent in most of its tributaries, especially the larger ones that span more climate zones, such as the Aras and Alazani. There are many lakes and [[wetland]]s along the Kura's lower course, most of which are formed by flooding, and some of which are formed by irrigation runoff water. Many lakes also form at the mouths of small tributaries that do not reach the ultimate destination in the Caspian most of the time. The local name for these lakes translate to ''dead lake'' or ''dead water'', suggesting that these lakes do not support much biodiversity.<ref>{{cite web|last=Bogutskaya|first=Nina|title=Kura-South Caspian Drainages|url=http://www.feow.org/ecoregion_details.php?eco=434|publisher=Freshwater Ecoregions of the World|work=World Wildlife Fund, Nature Conservancy|date=2010-03-11|access-date=2010-03-18|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005204044/http://www.feow.org/ecoregion_details.php?eco=434|archive-date=2011-10-05}}</ref>

==Economy and human use==

Formerly navigable up to [[Tbilisi]], the largest city on the river, the amount of water in the Kura has greatly diminished in the 20th century because of extensive use for [[irrigation]], [[municipal water]], and [[hydroelectricity]] generation. The Kura is regarded as one of the most stressed river basins in Asia.<ref name="overview">{{cite web |last1=Mammadov |first1=R.M. |last2=Verdiyev |first2=R. |url=http://www.unece.org/env/water/meetings/flood/workshop%202009/presentations/session%203/Mammadov_Verdiyev_article.pdf|title=Integrated Water Resources Management as Basis for Flood Prevention in the Kura River Basin|publisher=United Nations Economic Commission for Europe|date=February 2009|access-date=2010-03-12}}</ref> Most of the water comes from snowmelt and infrequent precipitation in the mountains, which leads to severe floods and an abundance of water for a short time of the year (generally in June and July), and a relatively low sustainable [[baseflow]]. Forest cover is sparse, especially in the Kura and Aras headwaters, and most of the water that falls on the highlands becomes runoff instead of supplying [[groundwater]]. Attempts at flood control include the constructions of [[levee]]s, [[dyke (construction)|dike]]s and dams, the largest of which is at [[Mingachevir]], an {{convert|80|m|ft|adj=on}}-high rockfill dam impounding over {{convert|15.73|km3|acre.ft}} of water.<ref name="presentation"/> However, because of the high [[sediment]] content of rivers in the Kura basin,<ref name="sediment"/> the effectiveness of these floodworks is limited and decreases every year.

Irrigation agriculture has been one of the primary economic mainstays of the lower Kura valley since ancient times.<ref name="Irrigation">{{cite web|last=Imanov|first=Farda A.|url=http://www.dsi.gov.tr/english/congress2007/chapter_1/08.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161020175708/http://www2.dsi.gov.tr/english/congress2007/chapter_1/08.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2016-10-20|title=Water Infrastructure of Kura River Basin Within Azerbaijan|publisher=General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works|work=Basin Resources Protection|pages=100–105|access-date=2010-03-12}}</ref> Because of water taken out for irrigation use, up to 20% of the water that formerly flowed in the river no longer reaches the Caspian Sea. Over 70% of the water in the Iori (Gabirry) River, a major tributary of the Kura, is expended before it reaches Lake Mingachevir.<ref name="wateruse"/> Of the {{convert|4525000|ha|acre}} of agricultural land in the lower Kura catchment area, {{convert|1426000|ha|acre}}, about 31%, are irrigated. Much of the water diverted from the river for irrigation goes to waste because of leakage from the canals, evaporation, poor maintenance, and other causes. Leaking water causes groundwater to rise, in some areas so high that about {{convert|267000|ha|acre}} of land are so waterlogged that they are no longer suitable for agriculture. About {{convert|631000|ha|acre}} of the irrigated lands have a dangerously high salt content because of mineral deposits from irrigation. Of this, {{convert|66000|ha|acre}} are extremely salinated. Irrigation returns water, returned to the river by an extensive but outdated<ref name="Irrigation"/> drainage system, contributes to severe pollution. Some of this degradation also comes from industrial and municipal wastewater discharge.<ref name="UNDP">{{cite web|url=http://www.undp.org.ge/Projects/kura.html |title=Regional Partnership for Prevention of Transboundary Degradation of the Kura-Aras River Basin |publisher=United Nations Development Programme |work=Environmental Conservation and Management |year=2002 |access-date=2010-03-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120094759/http://www.undp.org.ge/Projects/kura.html |archive-date=November 20, 2008 }}</ref>

==History==
[[Image:Kur Azerbaijan Salian.jpg|thumb|left|Kura in Azerbaijan]]
The ancient inhabitants of the Kura-Aras lowland called the river ''Mother Kür'', signifying the importance of the river to the region.<ref name="overview"/> The first irrigation agriculture began about 4,500 years ago in the eastern Azerbaijan lowlands. Trading centers were established in time, including one at Mingachevir in Azerbaijan and another at [[Mtskheta]] in Georgia.

The site at Mingachevir (probably Sudagylan),<ref name="livingcosmos">{{cite web|last=Pasichnyk|first=Richard Michael|url=http://www.livingcosmos.com/AD550-750.htm|title=AD 550 to 750—A Time for the New World's Renewal and Being 'Gracious to the Creatures' – Another Example of a Historical Cycle|publisher=Living Cosmos|date=2009-05-02|access-date=2010-03-13|archive-date=2009-12-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091217081833/http://www.livingcosmos.com/AD550-750.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> first discovered in the 1940s by [[archaeologist]] G. I. Ione, had "seven rectangular kilns&nbsp;... The fuel chamber was a trapezoid. The inner walls and floor were covered with a special coating. These kilns were attributed to the third century B.C. [2,300 years ago]. The number of kilns and the quantity of raw material indicate a trade center."<ref>{{cite journal|jstor=501010|title=Archaeological News, Russia|journal=Archaeological Institute of America|year=1950|volume=54|pages=425–429|doi=10.2307/501010
|last1=Field |first1=Henry |last2=Price |first2=Kathleen |issue=4 |s2cid=191409715 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The settlement was probably destroyed by a fire around A.D. 600, but its demise is uncertain.<ref name="livingcosmos"/> But perhaps the most famous of the ancient settlements on the Kura is the "cave town" at [[Uplistsikhe]], Georgia, first settled as early as 3,500 years ago. The city, carved into a cliff on the bank of the Kura covering an area of {{convert|8|ha|acre}}, contains underground living quarters, communal chambers, places of worship, storerooms, connected by a network of passageways. It reached its peak about 1,100 years ago as the political, religious and cultural center of the region, but in the 13th century, it fell to [[Mongolia]]n invaders.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5234/|title=Uplistsikhe Cave Town|publisher=United Nations|work=UNESCO World Heritage Center
|date=2007-10-24|access-date=2010-03-13}}</ref>

[[Image:Gori ISS.jpg|thumb|250px|Kura (Mtkvari) near Gori, Georgia]]

Even though irrigation agriculture had been well established for thousands of years, until the 1920s, humans did not have a significant effect on the ecology or hydrology of the Kura catchment area. Since then, [[logging]], [[grazing]] and especially agriculture began to have a severe outcome on the water availability of the basin. Many forested areas in the mountains have been replaced by thin grassland because of logging. These habitat changes have been detrimental to the ecology of the Kura basin. After the 1920s, [[wetlands]] were drained and [[reservoir]]s were created to facilitate development of irrigation in the lower Kura valley.<ref>{{cite book|last=Turner|first=Billie Lee|title=The Earth as transformed by human action: global and regional changes in the biosphere over the past 300 years|publisher=CUP Archive|year=1990|pages=527–528|isbn=0-521-36357-8}}</ref>

In the 1950s and 1960s, when the Caucasus region was part of the [[Soviet Union]], construction of many of the reservoirs and waterworks in the Kura basin began. Of the major reservoirs in the Kura catchment, one of the earliest was at [[Varvara, Azerbaijan|Varvara]] in 1952. Large-scale construction of dams continued until the 1970s.<ref name="overview"/><ref name="Irrigation"/>
<!-- ==Gallery==
[[Image:Mtkvari.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Mt'k'vari (Kura) River near Old Town, [[Tbilisi]].]]
[[Image:KuraRiver.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Semi-desert landscape near [[Vardzia]].]]
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==See also==
*[[Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan]]
*[[List of rivers of Georgia (country)]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Kura River}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20050116193921/http://www.bartleby.com/65/ku/Kura.html Kura]. [[The Columbia Encyclopedia]], Sixth Edition. 2001–05.

{{Rivers of Georgia}}
{{Rivers of Turkey}}
{{Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Rivers of Azerbaijan]]
[[Category:Rivers of Georgia (country)]]
[[Category:Rivers of Turkey]]
[[Category:International rivers of Asia]]
[[Category:Tributaries of the Caspian Sea]]
[[Category:Landforms of Ardahan Province]]