I.

Introduction

Tigris (Turkish, Dicle, Arabic, Diljah), river in south-west Asia, rising in Turkey and flowing through Iraq before emptying into the Persian Gulf. The Tigris carries a greater amount of water than the Euphrates river, its historic partner in the framing of the early Mesopotamian civilizations. Its average flow is 1.25 million litres (275,000 gallons) per second. The length of the Tigris is 1,900 km (1,180 mi), and its drainage area is greater than 111,000 sq km (43,000 sq mi).