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The Great Rann of Kutch is a seasonal salt marsh located in the Thar Desert in the Kutch District of Gujarat, India and the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is about in size and is reputed to be the largest salt desert in the world.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.gujarattourism.com/downloads/nov_2008.pdf )〕 This area has been inhabited by the Kutchi people. The name "Rann" comes from the Hindi word ''ran'' () meaning "desert". The Hindi word is derived from Sanskrit/Vedic word ' (इरिण) attested in the Rigveda and Mahābhārata. As early as 325 BCE, Alexander the Great was aware of the area. ==Location and description== The Great Rann of Kutch, along with the Little Rann of Kutch and the Banni grasslands on its southern edge, is situated in the district of Kutch and comprises some between the Gulf of Kutch and the mouth of the Indus River in southern Pakistan. The marsh can be accessed from the village of Kharaghoda in Surendranagar District. In India's summer monsoon, the flat desert of salty clay and mudflats, which average 15 meters above sea level, fills with standing water. In very wet years, the wetland extends from the Gulf of Kutch on the west through to the Gulf of Cambay on the east.〔''At its greatest extent, the Gulf of Kutch on the west (visible in the image directly below the salt marshes) and the Gulf of Cambay on the east (the brown, sediment-tinged body of water on the lower right) are both united during the monsoon.'' 〕 The area was a vast shallow of the Arabian Sea until continuing geological uplift closed off the connection with the sea, creating a vast lake that was still navigable during the time of Alexander the Great. The Ghaggar River, which presently empties into the desert of northern Rajasthan, formerly emptied into the Rann of Kutch, but the lower reaches of the river dried up as its upstream tributaries were captured by the Indus and Ganges thousands of years ago. Traces of the delta and its distributary channels on the northern boundary of the Rann of Kutch were documented by the Geological Survey of India in 2000. The Luni River, which originates in Rajasthan, drains into the desert in the northeast corner of the Rann. Other rivers feeding into the marsh include the Rupen from the east and the West Banas River from the northeast. There are sandy islets of thorny scrub, forming a wildlife sanctuary〔 and a breeding ground for some of the largest flocks of greater and lesser flamingos. Wildlife, including the Indian wild ass, shelter on islands of higher ground, called ''bets'', during the flooding. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Great Rann of Kutch」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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