人教版八年级下册英语--文章----The-Nile-River

TheNileRiverTheNileistheworld'slongestriverat4,135miles.Ithastwosources,oneatLakeVictoria,inUganda(theWhiteNile)andoneatLakeTana,inEthiopia(theBlueNile).TheentireNileRiverDeltaisestimatedtodrain(排水)anareaof1,293,000squaremiles.Thisareaissovast(广阔的)thatithasanumberofdifferentclimateareas.North,inEgyptandSudan,rainfallissparse.Moretothesouth,inandaroundEthiopia,rainfallisheavy,contributingtothefloodwatersthatrushdownstreamandeventuallycreatethewonderfullyfertilesoilthatsupportssomuchoflifeinEgyptandSudan.Dams,themostnotablebeingtheAswanHighDam,havebeenbuiltalongtheroutetopreventmassivefloodingofpopulatedareas.TheNileRiverDeltaishometomanyspeciesofanimals,includingcrocodiles,turtles,baboons,wildebeest,andmorethan300speciesofbirds,includingfishingeagles,ibis,andtheNileValleySunbird.TheancientEgyptianscalledtheriverArorAur,meaningblack,becauseoftheblacksedimentleftbehindafterthefrequentriverfloods.TheancientGreekscalledtheriverKem,whichtranslatesintoblackaswell.ButitisasNilethatweknowthisrivertoday.NilecomesfromtheGreekNeilos,whichmeansrivervalley.ThepeoplewholivedalongtheNileinancienttimesusedtheriverforagricultureandtransportation.Thathasn'tchanged,althoughthemethodsofagricultureandtransportationhave.SteamshipsarestillusedinEgyptandSudan,totransportgoods.FactsabouttheNileRiverLength4,135milesSource(s)LakeVictoria,Uganda;LakeTana,EthiopiaMouthMediterraneanSea,offEgyptCountriesFlowsThroughEgypt,Sudan,Uganda,Ethiopia,Zaire,Kenya,Tanzania,Rwanda,BurundiMajorCitiesFlowsBy/ThroughCairo,Karhtoum,Aswan,Luxor,Alexandria,EgyptWhereNameComesFromGreekwordNelios,whichmeansRiverValley