Everything about Wadi totally explained
» This article is about an Arabic term for valleys or dry riverbeds. For other uses of 'Vadi' see: Vadi (disambiguation).
Wadi (also:
Vadi) is traditionally a valley. In some cases it can refer to a dry
riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain. Compare
arroyo (creek),
canyon,
gulch, wash and
gully.
The term is very widely found in
Arabic toponyms. Wadis tend to be associated with centers of human population because sub-surface water is sometimes available in wadis.
Crossing wide wadis at certain times of the year can be dangerous, because of unexpected
flash floods. Such flash floods cause many deaths each year in
Saudi Arabia and many other
Middle Eastern countries.
In
North Africa the
transcription oued is used. In southwestern
Africa, the term
rivier is used, which is the
Afrikaans word for "river". The
Hebrew term
nahal (נחל)and Hindi/Urdu term "Nala" is synonymous in meaning and usage.
Some names of Spanish rivers are derived from
Andalusi Arabic toponyms where was used to mean a permanent river, for example
Guadalquivir from
al-wādī al-kabīr = "the great river".
Wadi deposits
Wadis are the
streams in a
desert environment and generally are dry year round except after a rain. The desert environment is characterized by a sudden but frequent heavy rainfall. As rainfall occurs near hill ranges, wadis usually form near a hilly
terrain. The deposition of wadi is rapid because of the sudden loss of the
velocity and
absorption of the water into the ground.
Fluvial activity in a
desert environment is also characterized as
flash floods.
Other references
Job speaks of his friends whom he calls brothers as being like these wadis. The
Jewish Study Bible transliterated the word "brook" in for the word "wadi". The commentator notes, "Wadi, a seasonal stream that may be dangerously overflowing in winter and dry in summer".
Albert Barnes (1798–1870), in his commentator books notes, "The idea here is, that travelers in a caravan would approach the place where water had been found before, but would find the fountain dried up or the stream lost in the sand; and when they looked for refreshment, they found only disappointment. The reference to this verse is found in where it reads that confidence in a treacherous person, an unfaithful person, is like a broken tooth and a foot out of joint." Barnes points to their ineffectiveness rather than emphasizing the pain caused by the two ailments.
Further Information
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