Gediz

(Gediz-Çayi; ancient Hermus), a river in western Turkey. Length, 341 km; basin area, 17,500 sq km. The Gediz has its source in the western part of the Anatolian Plateau in the region of the city of Murat. It flows for a great distance through a mountain valley north of the Boz Dağlar Range and enters the Gulf of Izmir in the Aegean Sea. The river is fed by rain, and in its upper reaches it is also fed by snow. The water reaches its greatest volume in the winter and autumn and falls off sharply in the summer. The Demirköy Reservoir and a hydroelectric power station are located at the point where the river flows out of the mountains. The Gediz is used for irrigation.