The Nile is the river that flows through Egypt and empties into the Mediterranean Sea through a large delta.
The river runs northward through northeastern Africa, passing through Uganda, South Sudan, Sudan, and Egypt. Its two principal tributaries are the White Nile and the Blue Nile; they meet at Khartoum in Sudan. The Blue Nile rises in Ethiopia, while the White Nile’s headwaters are in the Great Lakes region.
For thousands of years, annual flooding helped make the Nile Valley productive for agriculture and supported ancient Egyptian civilization. The Aswan High Dam, completed in 1970, greatly reduced natural flooding and created Lake Nasser. The Nile is often described as the world’s longest river, although some measurements and definitions have prompted comparisons with the Amazon.