What is an "influx"? What is the meaning of this word? Where did it come from? In our article you will find answers to all these questions. In addition, we will tell you about what is called a tributary in hydrology, as well as list the largest river tributaries of our planet.
Influx is… The meaning and origin of the word
The word has several meanings. In the broadest sense, inflow is a process that denotes action. In a figurative sense, this is a certain increase, strengthening, rise or replenishment of something. The term is widely used in science, in particular, in hydrology and geography.
The word influx is a masculine noun (in the plural - inflows) with a zero ending. It comes from the ancient Russian verb to flow, flow. The root of the word inflow: -current-. Formed with the prefix at- (see diagram below).
Here are just a few examples of the use of this word in modern speech:
A fresh air supply. What is this?”.
"The influx of foreign investment into the economy."
"Influx of vitality."
“The rapid influx of funds into the budget. How is that?”.
Synonyms for the word "influx": rise, tide, arrival; and also a river. Antonym - outflow.
In hydrology?
In geography and hydrology, this term has its own, highly specialized meaning. A tributary is a natural watercourse that flows into another larger watercourse. This forms the so-called mouth - the place where two water streams merge at a certain angle.
How is a tributary different from a normal river? Basically, absolutely nothing. After all, any tributary, in fact, is the same river. Moreover, the vast majority of existing natural watercourses on Earth are precisely tributaries, because only a few of them carry their waters to the seas or oceans.
Sometimes small rivers and streams that flow into a large lake or reservoir are also called tributaries.
Types and sizes
All river tributaries are usually divided into left and right (depending on which side they flow into the main river). They are also divided into orders - from one to twenty or more. So, a tributary that directly flows into the main watercourse is called a tributary of the first order. In turn, second-order tributaries flow into it, and so on (for clarity, see the diagram below).
River tributaries can be of completely different sizes. So, some of them reach a length of only a few hundred meters. But others stretched out for hundreds or even thousandskilometers! For example: the tributary of the Ob Irtysh in its total length significantly exceeds the Dnieper, the Danube, and even the Volga.
The top five largest tributaries of our planet include: Irtysh, Missouri, Purus, Madeira and Zhurua. The length of each of these rivers exceeds three thousand kilometers. Another curious fact: three tributaries from the list (namely Purus, Zhurua and Madeira) belong to the Amazon river system - the largest on planet Earth.
How is it determined which of the streams is the main one, and which is only its tributary? Most often, two main criteria are taken into account: the total length of the river to the point of confluence, as well as its water content (water flow in the channel). But in some cases, other factors are also taken into account - geological, geomorphological, historical and cultural, and others. In a word, in the article we considered this issue.
