Place · river

Aras River

Also known as Araxes, Araks

The Aras, ancient Araxes, is a river of the South Caucasus, about 1,070 kilometres long, which rises in eastern Turkey and joins the Kura in Azerbaijan. Its fertile valley was the heartland of ancient Armenia, where the capitals Artaxata and Armavir stood. Since the Russo-Persian treaties of 1813 and 1828 it has largely formed the border between Iran and the lands to its north.

Aras River
Image: M karzarj · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 8 state histories

EtiuniMassagetaeKingdom of Armenia (Artaxiad)Shaddadid EmirateKingdom of SyunikKhanate of QaradaghNakhichevan KhanateJavad Khanate

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Aras River. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/aras-river
MLA
“Aras River.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/aras-river. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Aras River.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/aras-river.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Aras River’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/aras-river (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻