View source for Pharpar

{{Short description|River in Syria}}
'''Pharpar''' (or '''Pharphar''' in the [[Douay–Rheims Bible]]) is a biblical [[river]] in Syria. It is the less important of the two rivers of [[Damascus]] mentioned in the [[Books of Kings|Book of Kings]] (2 Kings 5:12), now generally identified with the [[Awaj|Nahr al-Awaj]], also called Awaj (literally, 'crooked'), although if the reference to Damascus is limited to the city, as in the [[Arabic]] version of the [[Old Testament]], Pharpar would be the modern Taura.<ref name=EB1911>{{EB1911 |wstitle=Abana |display=Abana and Pharpar|volume=1 |page=6 |inline=1}}</ref> In the early [[Baedeker Guides]] it was identified as the Al-Sabirani, a fairly downstream tributary of the Awaj. The stream runs from west to east, flowing from [[Hermon]] south of Damascus, and like its companion [[Abana River]] travels across the plain of Damascus, which owes to them much of its fertility. The river loses itself in marshes, or ''Lakes of the Marj'', as they are called, on the borders of the great [[Arabian Desert]].<ref name=EB1911/>

[[John MacGregor (sportsman)|John MacGregor]], who gives a description of it in his book ''Rob Roy on the [[Jordan River|Jordan]]'', affirmed that as a work of [[hydraulic engineering]], the system and construction of the canals, by which the Pharpar and Abana were used for [[irrigation]], might be considered as one of the most complete and extensive in the world.<ref name=EB1911/> In the Bible, [[Naaman]] exclaims that the Abana and Pharpar are greater than all the waters of [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|Israel]] (2 Kings 5:12).

==See also==
* [[Amana (bible)]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
*{{JewishEncyclopedia|article=12088-pharpar}}

{{Damascus}}

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[[Category:Rivers of Syria]]
[[Category:Hebrew Bible rivers]]
[[Category:Geography of Damascus]]


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