View source for Col

{{short description|Lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks}}
{{other uses|Col (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Saslonch.jpg|thumb|The [[Langkofel Group]] in the [[Dolomites]] of the [[Italian Alps]], with the clearly visible Langkofel Col ({{lang|de|Langkofelscharte}}) left of centre]]

A '''col''' in [[geomorphology]] is the lowest point on a mountain [[ridge]] between two [[Summit|peaks]].<ref name="Whittow">Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984, p. 103. {{ISBN|0-14-051094-X}}.</ref> It may also be called a [[Gap (landform)|gap]] or [[mountain pass|pass]].<ref name="Whittow"/> Particularly rugged and forbidding cols in the terrain are usually referred to as '''notches'''. They are generally unsuitable as [[mountain pass]]es, but are occasionally crossed by [[mule]] tracks or climbers' routes. Derived from the French {{lang|fr|col}} ("collar, neck") from [[Latin]] ''collum'', "neck",<ref>{{lang|fr|[https://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/col "col"]}}, in {{lang|fr|[[Trésor de la langue française informatisé]]}} [''Digitized Treasury of the French Language''], 2012.</ref>  the term tends to be associated more with mountain than hill ranges.<ref>''Chambers 21st Century Dictionary'', Allied.</ref>  The distinction with other names for breaks in mountain ridges such as [[saddle (landform)|saddle]], [[wind gap]] or notch is not sharply defined and may vary from place to place. Many [[double summit]]s are separated by prominent cols.

The height of a summit above its highest col (called the [[key col]]) is effectively a measure of a mountain's [[topographic prominence]]. 

Cols lie on the line of the [[drainage divide|watershed]] between two [[mountain]]s, often on a prominent ridge or [[arête]]. For example, the highest col in Austria, the {{lang|de|Obere Glocknerscharte}} ("Upper Glockner Col", {{Höhe|3766|AT|link=true}}) lies between the [[Kleinglockner]] ({{Höhe|3783|AT}}) and [[Grossglockner]] ({{Höhe|3798|AT}}) mountains, giving the Kleinglockner a minimum prominence of 17&nbsp;metres.<ref>Willi End, Hubert Peterka (1990). {{lang|de|[http://www.rother.de/titpage/1266.php Alpenvereinsführer Glockner- und Granatspitzgruppe]}}. Munich: Bergverlag Rudolf Rother. {{ISBN|3-7633-1258-7}}.</ref>

{{gallery | width=200 height=150
|File:Brecha rolando.jpg|[[Brèche de Roland]] in the [[Pyrenees]]
|File:Aiguilles de Peuterey 001.JPG|The Peuterey Ridge on the [[Mt. Blanc]] massif. From left to right {{lang|fr|[[Aiguille Noire de Peuterey]]}} (3773&nbsp;m), {{lang|fr|Brèche-sud}} (3429&nbsp;m), the {{lang|fr|Dames Anglaises}} (3601&nbsp;m), {{lang|fr|Brèche-central}}, {{lang|fr|L'Isolée}}, {{lang|fr|Brèche-nord}} (3491&nbsp;m), {{lang|fr|[[Aiguille Blanche de Peuterey]]}} (4112&nbsp;m) and {{lang|fr|Col de Peuterey}} (3934&nbsp;m)
|File:Summit camp Everest.jpg|The [[South Col]] of [[Mount Everest]], at {{convert|7,906|m|ft|abbr=on}} the upper staging point for attempts on its summit.
}}

==See also==
* {{Annotated link|Arête}}
* [[Saddle (landform)]]

== References ==
<references />

== External links ==
{{Wiktionary}}
{{Commons|Category:Mountain saddles|Col}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20020509123930/http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/lemke/alpine_glacial_glossary/landforms/col.html Illustrated Glossary of Alpine Mountain Landforms: Col]. Retrieved 16 August 2015.

[[Category:Landforms]]
[[Category:Oronyms]]