The Nile flows through Cairo and forms Egypt’s northern delta.
The Nile runs northward through northeastern Africa before emptying into the Mediterranean Sea. Its two principal tributaries are the White Nile, whose headwaters are in the Great Lakes region, and the Blue Nile, which rises in Ethiopia. They meet at Khartoum in Sudan.
For thousands of years, seasonal flooding deposited fertile silt across the Nile Valley and Delta. This dependable agricultural corridor supported the development of ancient Egyptian civilization in an otherwise largely arid region. Modern dams, especially the Aswan High Dam, now regulate much of the river’s flow.
The Nile is sometimes described as the world’s longest river, although measurements and definitions can make comparisons with the Amazon controversial. That debate does not change its central place in Egyptian geography. Cairo grew beside the river, while the delta spreads into a densely settled fan-shaped plain north of the capital.