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A river delta is so named because the shape of the Nile Delta approximates the triangular uppercase Greek letter delta.The triangular shape of the Nile Delta was known to audiences of classical Athenian drama; the tragedy Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus refers to it as the "triangular Nilotic land", though not as a "delta". [8]
River bifurcation (from Latin: furca, fork) occurs when a river (a bifurcating river) flowing in a single channel separates into two or more separate streams (called distributaries) which then continue downstream. Some rivers form complex networks of distributaries, typically in their deltas.
People have lived in the Nile Delta region for thousands of years, and it has been intensively farmed for at least the last five thousand years. The delta was a major constituent of Lower Egypt, and there are many archaeological sites in and around the delta. [6] Artifacts belonging to ancient sites have been found on the delta's coast.
Slower flows also mean rivers have less power to move sediment, made up of dirt and small rocks. This has big impacts further downstream as sediment is vital to build river deltas, which provide ...
It is the opposite of a tributary, a stream that flows towards and into another stream or river. Distributaries are a result of river bifurcation and are often found where a river approaches a lake or an ocean and divides into distributary networks; as such they are a common feature of river deltas. [1]
Like other desert river deltas, such as the Nile Delta and the Indus River Delta, the Colorado River delta has been greatly altered by human activity. Decades of dam construction and water diversions in the United States and Mexico have reduced the delta to a remnant system of small wetlands and brackish mudflats. [6]
The modern Mississippi River Delta formed over the last approximately 4,500 years as the Mississippi River deposited sand, clay and silt along its banks and in adjacent basins. The Mississippi River Delta is a river-dominated delta system, influenced by the largest river system in North America.
People have to be careful on the river delta as severe flooding also occurs. In 1998, the Ganges flooded the delta, killing about 1,000 people and leaving more than 30 million people homeless. The Bangladesh government asked for $900 million to help feed the people of the region, as the entire rice crop was lost. [11]