PHARPAR

One of two rivers named by Naaman as in or near Damascus (2 Kgs 5:12). Its exact identity is uncertain. One tradition identifies it with the Taura, one of seven waterways branching off the Barada River, which flows through Damascus. Another identifies it with the Awaj, a river originating in the eastern foothills of Mt Hermon and flowing south of Damascus. In its early going, its course is steep and swift. The Awaj swells during the spring because of the melting of the snows on Mt Hermon, and subsides as the heat of the summer sets in. The river accounts for the good productivity of the southern Damascan plain and flows much more rapidly than the sluggish Jordan.