Lake Van

Lake Van from space, September 1996

Lake Van Landsat photo

Lake Van (Turkish: Van Gölü, in Armenian: Վանա լիճ) is the largest lake in Turkey, located in the far east of the country. It is a saline lake of volcanic origin with no outlet, receiving water from numerous small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. The lake is 120 km long, 80 km wide and 457 metres deep. It has an area of 3,755 km² and is located 1719 metres above sea level.

The outlet of Lake Van was blocked at some time during the pleistocene, when lava flows from Nemrut volcano blocked westward outlet towards the Mus Plain. Now dormant Nemrut Dagi is close to the western shore of the lake and another dormant stratovolcano Suphan Dagi dominates the northern side of the lake.

Lake Van's waters are strongly alkaline and rich in sodium carbonate and other salts which are extracted by evaporation and used as detergents. Darekh, a species of herring caught during the spring floods, spawns near the mouths of streams feeding the lake and is the only fish that can survive in the brackish waters.

The lake is surrounded by fruit and grain-growing agricultural areas.

Contents

1 Cultural history
2 Railways
3 References
4 See also

Cultural history

The lake was in the centre of Urartian kingdom from about 1000 BC and capital of Urartu, Tushpa, was on the shore of Van (approximately on the site of Van city).

Later the land around lake was ruled by Armenians. Along with lake Sevan (in today's Armenia) and lake Urmia (in today's Iran), Van was one of the three great lakes of the Armenian Kingdom, referred to as the seas of Armenia. On several islands in the lake, remains of Armenian churches and monasteries can be found, many of which were destroyed under Turkish and Kurdish rule. The best preserved are of a Church of the Holy Cross from the tenth century located on Akdamar Island and of an eleventh century monastery on Arter.

The Church of the Holy Cross (Armenian Սուրբխաչ, Surb Chatsch, scientific transliteration Surb xač') on Akdamar is a famous example of Armenian art, and is the remains of a monastery built by Gagik Artzruni, king of Armenia, between 915 and 921. Reliefs on the external walls represent Bible stories such as Adam and Eve, Jonah and the whale, and David and Goliath.

Other important sights were created by Kurdish rulers of the area, such as Van Kalesi (castle) on the eastern shore. The city of Van is located on the eastern shore of the lake.

Lake Van is also the origin of the popular Turkish Van breed of cat, noted for among other things its unusual fascination with water (a very rare trait among cats, who generally dislike being immersed in water).

Since about 1995 there have been reported sightings of a 'Lake Van monster' about 15 metres in length named Van Canavarı. Unal Kozak, a teaching assistant at Van University, has interviewed about a thousand people who claim to have seen the monster, and has written a book on the subject. Sceptics point out that the region would benefit from tourist revenue and a hoax might attract visitors.

Ferry Van approaching Van harbour.

Railways

The railway connecting Turkey and Iran built in the 1970s uses a train ferry across Lake Van between the cities Tatvan and Van, rather than building railway tracks around the rugged shore line. Transfer from train to ship and back again limits the total carrying capacity.

Lake Van

Cultural history

Railways

References

See also