What is the…
Abana

also known as: Amana, Barada (modern), Χρυσορρόας (Greek), Chrysorrhoas (Romanized), golden stream

Hebrew: אֲבָנָה —transliteration: Abanah or Abana —meaning: stony

This was the name of the main river of Damascus, Syria.

The modern name is the Barada, the Chrysorrhoas, or “golden stream,” of the Greeks.

The Aramean (Syrian) General Naaman angrily exclaimed that Syria’s Abana and Pharpar rivers are greater than all the waters of Israel (2 Kings 5:12).

It falls in a canyon of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range, about 23 miles northwest of Damascus, and after flowing southward for a little way parts into three smaller streams, the central one flowing through Damascus, and the other two on each side of the city, diffusing beauty and fertility where otherwise there would be barrenness.

Today, this water resource is highly managed and channeled.