Oxus

Oxus, the ancient name of a river in western Asia, which is called by Arab writers Jihūn, and by the Asiatics of the regions through which it flows Amū or Amū-Daria. It rises in the elevated tablelands between the Tian-Shan Mountains and the Hindu-Kush, and flows west as far as 66° E. long. through Badakshan, and then north-west through Bokhara and Khiva, and empties itself by several mouths into the southern end of the Sea of Aral. There are two main head-streams issuing at 13,042 and 14,177 feet respectively, and uniting in 71° 20' E. long. at 7500 feet. In the first part of its course the volume of the Oxus is increased by numerous affluents, but it receives few tributaries after it turns north-west, its course then running through the deserts of Turkestan. The delta is 90 miles long, and embraces many lakes and marshes. The principal use made of the river is for irrigation purposes; Khiva owes its prosperity entirely to its waters. The river has been ascended for 280 miles by steamboats. It is believed that before the Christian era the Oxus flowed into the Caspian, and that since about 600 A.D. it has twice changed its course. The Russians have been considering the possibility of turning it back again into the Caspian. The physical conditions seem to be favourable, and if the plan were carried out Russia would get a navigable highway a couple of hundred miles farther towards the centre of Asia. For the great railway bridge across the river (1888), see BRIDGE, Vol. II. p. 444; and see works by J. Wood (1841; new ed. by Colonel Yule, 1872) and MacGahan (1876).