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Ancient Rivers Reshaped Civilization's Birthplace
2 Jun
Summary
- Two ancient rivers, larger than modern counterparts, once flowed.
- A dramatic geological event rerouted rivers and dried the Mediterranean.
- These rivers influenced early human civilization and migration patterns.
New research published in Nature Geoscience suggests the Euphrates River originated as two immense, separate waterways: the Paleo-Karasu and the Paleo-Murat. These ancient rivers, flowing from modern-day Türkiye, significantly predated the current river system, with the Paleo-Murat appearing over 16.5 million years ago and the Paleo-Karasu between 8.6 and 5.9 million years ago.
At their peak, these rivers were colossal; the Paleo-Karasu was larger than the Nile, and the Paleo-Murat exceeded the combined flow of the modern Tigris and Euphrates. They initially flowed into the Mediterranean Basin for approximately 120,000 years. However, around 5.3 million years ago, a significant geological event, possibly an earthquake or mountain formation, altered the region's landscape.
This event redirected the rivers southeastward, leading them to merge and form the river system that ultimately flowed into the Persian Gulf. This redirection coincided with a dramatic drying of the Mediterranean Sea, with sea levels dropping significantly. The altered river courses and landscape changes are believed to have influenced human migration and the development of early civilizations in Mesopotamia.
