Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
8(3):379-412
Internat. Assoc. Great Lakes Res., 1982
FEATURE ARTICLE
Charles E. Herdendorf
Center for Lake Erie Area Research
and
Ohio Sea Grant Program,
The Ohio State Universiiy
Columbus, Ohio 43210
ABSTRACT. An inventory ofthe distribution. origin. and morphometry ofthe world's large lakes has
been undertaken. Natural lakes, fresh and salt, with a surface area greater than 500 km 2 are included;
253 such lakes have been identified. Large lakes occur on all continents, except Antarctica. but nearly
half of them (48 percent) are found in North America and most of these lie above the 40th parallel.
attesting to the scouring action of continental glaciers. Tectonic belts. such as the Riff Valley of east
Africa and the Lake Baikal region ofSiberia. are the second most common loci oflarge lakes. Tabular
morphometric data include: surface area, drainage basin. elevation. mean and maximum depth,
volume. length and breadth. and orientation of longest axis. These data show that the large lakes of
the world occupy a surface area of1,456,000 km 2 and they have an estimated volume of202.000 km3
Large lakes account for approximately 90 percent ofthe total surface area and volume ofwater held in
all lakes of the world. Revisions and supplements to the data presented are welcomed.
ADDITIONAL INDEX WORDS: Morphometry. water quality. limnology. bathymetry, lake
geography.
379
380 C.E.HERDENDORF
(California-Nevada border) and larger. For the World (Bartholomew et al. 1980) which were
purpose of this inventory, natural lakes are defined constructed by systems agreed to jointly by the
as essentially static bodies of water, including both British Permanent Committee on Geographical
inland basins and those separated from the oceans Names and the United States Board on Geograph-
by spits and barrier bars (coastal lagoons). A total ical Names. Lakes in China are given in their
of 253 lakes has been identified which satisfies these Pinyin spellings. A final column in Table 1 lists
criteria. alternate names and spelling variants which have
Reservoirs have not been included in this inven- been observed in the literature or on various maps
tory, but many exist which have a surface area in and atlases. Wade-Giles spellings of Chinese lake
excess of 500 km2 . These man-made bodies of names are given in this column.
water are to be inventoried in a future paper.
LAKE DISTRIBUTION
LAKE NAMES The continent, nation(s), and geographic coordi-
One of the most perplexing problems in compiling nates of the 253 large lakes of the world are
an inventory of the world's largest lakes is dealing presented in Table 2. With the exception of the
with lake names. The diverse ways in which letters Canadian lakes, the location for most lakes was
of the Latin alphabet are pronounced lead to a obtained from the tables prepared by Showers
variety of spellings when non-Latin alphabet scripts (1979). The outstanding inventory published by
are transcribed. This problem is further exacer- Environment Canada, Inland Waters Directorate
bated by the fact that different countries often use (Gilliland et al. 1973), was used for Canadian lakes.
different names for the same lake. Attempts at All locations were confirmed on 1: 1,000,000 scale
international standardization have not yet been maps published by the U.S. Defense Mapping
fully successful, and the literature abounds with Agency, Topographic Center (the designation code
lakes that are referred to by a variety of names. In for the map upon which each lake appears is also
an attempt to minimize this confusion, Table 1 lists listed in Table 2) and on larger scale maps in the
all lakes by a simple code name (generally a proper Times Atlas of the World (Bartholomew et al.
name without its lake-word modifier) followed by 1980) and the Rand McNally new International
its English conventional name and its local name Atlas (Voisin and Leverenz 1980). Geographic
transliterated into the Latin alphabet. Latinized coordinates (latitude and longitude) are given to
lake names are those used in The Times Atlas ofthe the nearest minute for the center of the lake area.
TABLE 1, continued.
English Latinized
NO. Code Name Conventional Name Local Name Alternate Name
20. BAGHRASH Lake Baghrash Bosten Hu Bagrash, Possuteng
21. BAIKAL Lake Baikal Ozero Baykal
22. BAKER Baker Lake Baker Lake
23. BALATON Lake Balaton Balaton Platten
24. BALKHASH Lake Balkhash Ozero Balkhash Ala-Denghiz, Balchas, Se Hai
25. BANGWEULU Lake Bangweulu Lac Bangweolo
26. BAY Bay Lagoon Laguna de Bay
27. BECHAROF Becharof Lake Becharof Lake
28. BELOYE White Lake Beloye Ozero
29. BEYSEHIR Lake Beysehir Beysehir Golu Beishehr
30. BIENVILLE Lake Bienville Lac Bienville
31. BIG TROUT Big Trout Lake Big Trout Lake
32. BIWA Lake Biwa Biwa-Ko
33. BRAS D'OR Bras d'Or Lake Bras d'Or Lake
34. BUENOS AIRES Lake Buenos Aires Lago Buenos Aires General Carrera
35. BUFFALO Buffalo Lake Buffalo Lake
36. BUYR Lake Buyr Buyr Nuur Bor, Buir, Pei-erh
37. CARATASCA Caratasca Lagoon Laguna de Caratasca
38. CASPIAN Caspian Sea Kaspiyskoye More Kaspijskoje, Khazar
39. CEDAR Cedar Lake Cedar Lake
40. CHAD Lake Chad Lac Tchad
41. CHAMPLAIN Lake Champlain Lake Champlain
42. CHANY Lake Chany Ozero Chany
43. CHAO Lake Chao Chao Hu
44. CHAPALA Lake Chapala Lago de Chapala
45. CHILKA Chilka Lake Chilka Lake
46. CHILWA Lake Chilwa Lake Chilwa Chirua, Shirwa
47. CHIQUITA Lake Chiquita Lago Mar Chiquita
48. CHIRIQUI Chiriqui Lagoon Laguna de Chiriqui
49. CHURCHILL Churchill Lake Churchill Lake
50. CLAIRE Lake Claire Lake Claire
51. CLINTON COLDEN Clinton Colden Lake Clinton-Colden Lake
52. COLHUE HUAPI Lake Colue Huapi Lago Colue Huapi
53. CONSTANCE Lake of Constance Bodensee Costanza
54. CONTWOYTO Contwoyto Lake Contwoyto Lake
55. CREE Cree Lake Cree Lake
56. CROSS Cross Lake Cross Lake
57. DAUPHIN Dauphin Lake Dauphin Lake
58. DEAD Dead Sea Dead Sea Lut, Mayyit, Melah
59. DESCHAMBAULT Deschambault Lake Deschambault Lake
60. DORE Dore Lake Dore Lake
61. DUBAWNT Dubawnt Lake Dubawnt
62. EAU CLAIRE Clearwater Lake Lac Eau Claire
63. EBI Lake Ebi Ebinur Hu Aipi
64. EDWARD Lake Edward Lake Edward Idi Amin Dada
65. EGRIDIR Lake Egridir Hoyran Golu Egirdir
66. ENNADAI Ennadai Lake Ennadai Lake
76. ENRIQUILLO Lake Enriquillo Lago de Enriquillo
68. ERIE Lake Erie Lake Erie
69. ESKIMO NORTH Eskimo North lake Eskimo North lake Husky
70. ESKIMO SOUTHERN Eskimo Southern lake Eskimo Southern Lake Husky
71. EVANS Lake Evans Lac Evans
72. EVORON Lake Evoron Ozero Zvoron
73. EYRE Lake Eyre Lake Eyre
74. FAGNANO Lake Fagnano Lago Fagnano Cami
75. FAGUIBINE Lake Faguibine Lac Faguibine
76. FERGUSON Ferguson Lake Ferguson Lake
77. FLATHEAD Flathead lake Flathead Lake
78. FROBISHER Frobisher Lake Frobisher Lake
382 C.E.HERDENDORF
TABLE 1, continued.
English Latinized
NO. Code Name Conventional Name Local Name Alternate Name
79. FROME Lake Frome Lake Frome
80. GAIRDNER Lake Gairdner Lake Gairdner
81. GARRY Garry Lake Garry Lake
82. GENEVA Lake of Geneva Lac Leman Ginevra
83. GODS Gods Lake Gods Lake
84. GOOSE Goose Lake Goose Lake
85. GRAND Grand Lake Grand Lake
86. GRAS Lake Gras Lac de Gras
87. GREAT BEAR Great Bear Lake Great Bear Lake
88. GREAT SALT Great Salt Lake Great Salt Lake
89. GREAT SLAVE Great Slave Lake Great Slave Lake
90. GUILLAUME- Lake Guillaume-Delisle Lac Guillaume-Delisle Richmond G.
DELISLE
91. HAMMAR Lake Hammer Hawr al Hammer
92. HAR Lake Har Nar Nuur Hara, Khara
93. HAR US Lake Har Us Nar Us Nuur Hara Usa, Khara-Us
94. HAZEN Lake Hazen Lake Hazen
95. HELMAND Lake Helmand Daryacheh-ye Sistan Hamun-i-Helmand, Hirmand, Seistan
96. HOTTAH Hottah Lake Hottah Lake
97. HOVSGOL Lake Hovsgol Novsgol Nuur Hobsogol, Hubsugul, Khubsugul, Kosogol
98. HULUN Lake Hulun Hulun Nur Dalai
99. HUNGTZE Lake Hungtze Hongze Hu Hungtse
100. HURON Lake Huron Lake Huron
101. HYARGAS Lake Hyargas Hyargas Nuur Hirgis, Khirgis, Kirgis
102. ILIAMNA Iliamna Lake Iliamna Lake
103. ILMEN Lake limen Ozero limen
104. IMANDRA Lake Imandra Ozero Imandra
105. INARI Lake Inari Inari Enare
106. ISLAND Island Lake Island Lake
107. ISSYKKUL Lake Issykkul Ozero Issyk-kul Issyk
108. ISTADA Lake Istada Abi-i-istada Istadeh-ye Mogor
109. IZABAL Lake Izabal Lago de Izabal
110. KAMILUKUAK Kamilukuak Lake Kamilukuak Lake Kamiluk
II I. KAMINAK Kaminak Lake Kaminak Lake
112. KAMINURIAK Kaminuriak Lake Kaminuriak Lake
1l3. KAOYU Kaoyu Lake Gaoyu Hu Kaopao
114. KASBA Kasba Lake Kasba Lake
115. KHANKA Lake Khanka Ozero Khanka Chanka, Hanka, Hsingkai, Xingkai
116. KIVU Lake Kivu Lac Kivu
117. KOKO Lake Koko Nor Qinghai Hu Ching, Tsing
118. KULUNDINSKOE Lake Kulundinskoe Ozero Zulundinskoye Kulunda, Kulundinskaje
119. KURISCHES Kurisches Bay Kurskiy Zaliv Courland, Kursky
120. KYARING Lake Kyaring Gyaring Co Chalin, Dzharing
12I. KYOGA Lake Kyoga Lake Kyoga Kioga
122. LADOGA Lake Ladoga Ladozhskoye Ozero Ladozhskoje
123. LESSER SLAVE Lesser Slave Lake Lesser Slave Lake
124. LLANQUIHUE Lake Llanquihue Lago Llanquihue
125. LOBSTICK Lobstick Lake Lobstick Lake
126. LOP Lake Lop Nor Lop Nur Lob, Lopu
127. LOWER SEAL Lower Seal Lake Lacs des Loups Marins
128. LUANG Luang Sea Thale Luang Sap
129. MACKAY Mackay Lake Mackay Lake
130. MAI-NDOMBE Lake Leopold II Lac Mai-Ndombe
131. MALAREN Lake Malaren Malaren Malar
132. MANAGUA Lake Managua Lago de Managua Xolotlan
133. MANITOBA Lake Manitoba Lake Manitoba
134. MANOUANE Lake Manouane Lac Manouane
135. MANZALA Lake Manzala Bahra el Manzala Manzilah, Menzaleh
136. MARACAIBO Lake Maracaibo Lago de Maracaibo
LARGE LAKES OF THE WORLD 383
TABLE 1, continued.
English Latinized
NO. Code Name Conventional Name Local Name Alternate Name
137. MARTRE Lake Martre Lac la Martre
138. MELVILLE Lake Melville Lake Melville
139. MICHIGAN Lake Michigan Lake Michigan
140. MICHIKAMUA Michikamua Lake Michikamua Lake
141. MILLE LACS Mille Lacs Lake Mille Lacs Lake
142. MINTO Lake Minto Lac Minto
143. MIRIM Mirim Lagoon Lagoa Mirim Merin
144. MISTASSINI Lake Mistassini Lac Mistassini
145. MOOSE Moose Lake Moose Lake
146. MWERU Lake Mweru Lac Moero
147. NAHUEL HUAPI Lake Nahuel Huapi Lago Nahuel Huapi
148. NAKNEK Naknek Lake Naknek Lake
149. NAM Lake Nam Nam Co Namu, Tengri
150. NAMAK Lake Namak Daryacheh-ye Namak
151. NETILLING Netilling Lake Netilling Lake Nettilling
152. NGORING Lake Ngoring Ngoring Hu Chaling
153. NICARAGUA Lake Nicaragua Lago de Nicaragua Cocibolca
154. NIPIGON Lake Nipigon Lake Nipigon
155. NIPISSING Lake Nipissing Lake Nipissing
156. NONACHO Nonacho Lake Nonacho Lake
157. NUELTIN Nueltin Lake Nueltin Lake
158. NYASA Lake Nyasa Lake Nyasa Malawi, Niassa
159. ODER Oder Bay Stettiner Haff Szczecinski
160. OKEECHOBEE Lake Okeechobee Lake Okeechobee
161. OLING Lake Oling Gyaring Hu Tsaring
162. ONEGA Lake Onega Ozero Onezhskoye Onezskoje
163. ONTARIO Lake Ontario Lake Ontario
164. OULU Lake Oulu Oulu Ule
165. PAIJANNE Lake Paijanne Paijanne
166. PANGONG Lake Pangong Bangong Co Lumuhu, Nyak, Pankung
167. PATOS Patos Lagoon Lagoa dos Patos
168. PAYNE Payne Lake Payne Lake
169. PEl PUS Lake Peipus Ozero Chudskoye Chudskoje
170. PETER POND Peter Pond Lake Peter Pond Lake
171. PIELINEN Lake Pielinen Pielinen
172. PLAYGREEN Playgreen Lake Playgreen Lake
173. POINT Point Lake Point Lake
174. POMO Lake Porno Puma Yumco Pumu, Pumuchang
175. PONTCHARTRAIN Lake Pontchartrain Lake Pontchartrain
176. POOPO Lake Poopo Lago de Poopo Pampa Aullagas
177. POYANG Lake Poyang Poyang Hu
178. PRINCESS MARY Princess Mary Lake Princess Mary Lake
179. PYA Lake Pya Ozero Pyaozero
180. PYRAMID Pyramid Lake Pyramid Lake
181. RAINY Rainy Lake Rainy Lake
182. RED Red Lake Red Lake (Upper &
Lower)
183. REINDEER Reindeer Lake Reindeer Lake
184. RONGE Lake Ronge Lac la Ronge
185. RUDOLF Lake Rudolf Lake Rudolf Turkana
186. RUKWA Lake Rukwa Lake Rukwa
187. SAIMAA Lake Saimaa Saimaa Saima
188. SAINT CLAIR Lake Saint Clair Lake Saint Clair
189. SAINT-JEAN Lake Saint-Jean Lac Saint-Jean
190. SAKAMI Lake Sakami Lac Sakami
191. SALTON Salton Sea Salton Sea
192. SAN MARTIN Lake San Martin Lago San Martin O'Higgins
193. SANDY Sandy lake Sandy Lake
194. SAP Lake Sap TonIe Sap Sab, Grand Lac
384 C. E. HERDENDORF
TABLE 1, continued.
English Latinized
NO. Code Name Conventional Name Local Name Alternate Name
195. SASYKKOL Lake Sasykkol Ozero Sasykkor Sasyk
196. SCUTARI Lake Scutari Skadarsko Jezero Shkodres, Skadar
197. SEG Lake Seg Ozero Segozero Segeza
198. SELAWIK Selawik Lake Selawik Lake
199. SELETYTENIZ Lake Seletyteniz Ozero Seletyteniz
200. SELWYN Selwyn Lake Selwyn Lake
201. SEUL Lake Seul Lac Seul
202. SEVAN Lake Sevan Ozero Sevon Gokcha
203. SHAMO Lake Shamo Lake Chamo Ruspoli, Margherita
204. SIMCOE Lake Simcoe Lake Simcoe
205. SNOWBIRD Snowbird Lake Snowbird Lake
206. SOUTHERN INDIAN Southern Indian Lake Southern Indian Lake
207. SOUTH HENIK South Henik Lake South Henik Lake
208. SUPERIOR Lake Superior Lake Superior
209. TAHOE Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe
210. TAl Lake Tai Tai Hu
211. TAKIYUAK Takiyuak Lake Takiyuak Lake
212. TANA Lake Tana Lake Tana Tsana
213. TANGANYIKA Lake Tanganyika Lac Tanganyika
214. TANGRA Lake Tangra Tangra Yumco Dangrayum, Tangkulayumu
215. TATHLINA Tathlina Lake Tathlina Lake
216. TAUPO Lake Taupo Lake Taupo
217. TAYMYR Lake Taymyr Ozero Taymyr Taimyr, Tajmyr
218. TEBESJUAK Tebesjuak Lake Tebesjuak Lake
219. TENGIZ Lake Tengiz Ozero Tengiz
220. TERINAM Lake Terinam Zhari Namco Tiehlinanmu
221. TERMINOS Terminos Lagoon Laguna de Terminos
222. TESHEKPUK Teshekpuk Lake Teshekpuk Lake
223. TlTICACA Lake Titicaca Lago Titicaca
224. TOBA Lake Toba Danau Toba
225. TOP Lake Top Ozero Topozero
226. TORRENS Lake Torrens Lake Torrens
227. TROUT Trout Lake Trout Lake
228. TULEMALU Tulemalu Lake Tulemalu Lake
229. TUMBA Lake Tumba Lac Tumba
230. TUNGTING Lake Tungting Dangting Hu Dongtinghu
231. TUZ Lake Tuz Tuz Gam
232. UBINSKOE Ubinskoe Lake Ubinskoye Ozero Ubinskoje
233. ULUNGUR Lake Ulungur Ulungur Hu Pulunto, Ulyungur, Urungu, Wulunku
234. UPEMBA Lake Upemba Lac Upemba
235. URMIA Lake Urmia Daryacheh-ye Rezaiyeh Rizaiyeh, Urumiah
236. UVS Uvs Lake Uvs Nuur Ubsa, Ubsu
237. VAN Lake Van Van Golu
238. VANERN Lake Vanern Vanern Vaner, Vener
239. VATTERN Lake Vattern Vattern Vatter, Vetter
240. VICTORIA Lake Victoria Lake Victoria
241. VIEDMA Lake Viedma Lago Viedma
242. VYG Lake Vyg Ozero Vygozero
243. WEISHAN Lake Weishan Weishan Hu
244. WHOLDAIA Wholdaia Lake Wholdaia Lake
245. WINNEBAGO Lake Winnebago Lake Winnebago
246. WINNIPEG Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg
247. WINNIPEGOSIS Lake Winnipegosis Lake Winnipegosis
248. WOLLASTON Wollaston Lake Wollaston Lake
249. WOODS Lake of the Woods Lake of the Woods
250. YAMDROK Lake Yamdrok Yamzho Yumco Yamdrog, Yangchoyung
251. YATHKYED Yathkyed Lake Yathkyed Lake
252. ZAYSAN Lake Zaysan Ozero Zaysan Zaisan, Zajsan
253. ZILING Lake Ziling Siling Co Chilin, Goring, Seling
TABLE 2. Location and origin of the large lakes of the world.
LOCATION
USDMA
NO. NAME CONTINENT NATION(S) LATITUDE LONGITUDE MAP NO. GEOLOGIC ORIGIN
I. ABAYA Africa Ethiopia 0620'N 3755'E NB-37
2. ABE Africa Djibouti, Ethiopia 11 IO'N 41 45'E NC-38
3. ABERDEEN N. Am. Canada (NWT) 64 32'N 8954'W NQ-15/16 Glacial (scour)
4. ABITIBI N. Am. Canada (Quebec, Ontario) 48 45'N 7947'W NM-17 Glacial (scour)
5. ABY Africa Ivory Coast 05 15'N 0314'W NB-30 Coastal (lagoon)
6. ALAKOL Asia USSR (Kazakhstan) 46 IO'N 81 50'E NL-44
7. ALBERT Africa Uganda, Zaire 01 4O'N 31 oo'E NA-36 Tectonic (graben)
8. ALEXANDRINA Oceania Australia (South Australia) 35 26'S 139 IO'E NI-54 Coastal (lagoon)
9. AMADEUS Oceania Australia (Northern Territory) 2430'S 131 25'E SG-52
10. AMADJUAK N. Am. Canada (NWT, Baffin Island) 64 54'N 7114'W NQ-19/20 Glacial (scour)
II. ANGIKUNI N. Am. Canada (NWT) 62 13'N 99 55'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour)
12. ARAL Asia USSR (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan) 45oo'N 60 OO'E NL-40,41 Tectonic (uplift)
13. ARGENTINO S. Am. Argentina (Santa Cruz) 50 13'S 72 25'W SM-18/19 Glacial (scour, damming)
14. ARTILLERY N. Am. Canada (NWT) 63 IO'N 107 52'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour)
15. ASHUANIPI N. Am. Canada (Newfoundland) 52 39'N 6608'W NN-20,19 Glacial (scour) ~
16. ATHABASCA N. Am. Canada (Alberta, Saskatchewan) 59 11 'N 10922'W NO-12,13 Glacial (scour) >
i:I:l
17. ATLIN N. Am. Canada (British Columbia, 59 27'N 13349'W NO-7/8 Glacial (scour)
Yukon) ~
trl
18. AUSTIN Oceania Australia (Western Australia) 2745'S 117 30'E SG/50
19. AYLMER N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6408'N 108 30'W NQ-II/12 Glacial (scour) ~
20. BAGHRASH Asia China (Sinkiang) 4200N 8700'E NK-45 >
~
21. BAIKAL Asia USSR (Russia) 5400'N 109OO'E NN-48,49 NM-48 Tectonic (graben)
~
22. BAKER N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6409'N 9516'W NQ-15/16 Glacial (scour) 'JJ
23. BALATON Europe Hungary 4650'N 17 45'E NL-34 Tectonic (graben)
24. BALKHASH Asia USSR (Kazakhstan) 46oo'N 74oo'E NL-43,44 Tectonic (graben) 0
~
25. BANGWEULU Africa Zambia 1105'S 29 45'E SC-36,35
loool
=
26. BAY Asia Philippines (Luzon Island) 1423'N 121 lYE ND-51
27, BECHAROF N. Am. USA (Alaska) 57 56'N 15623'W NO-3/4 NO-5/6
28. BELOYE Europe USSR (Russia) 60 15'N 3740'E NP-37/38 ~
29.. BEYSEHIR Asia Turkey 37 4O'N 31 30'E NJ-36 ~
30. BIENVILLE N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 55 05'N 72 50'W NN-18 Glacial (scour) 0
31. BIG TROUT N. Am. Canada (Ontario) 53 46'N 90 OO'W NN-15 Glacial (scour) i:I:l
32. BIWA Asia Japan (Honshu Island) 35 15'N 1360YE NI-53 t""
33. BRAS D'OR N. Am. Canada (Nova Scotia) 44 55'N 60 47'W NL-20 Coastal (lagoon) 0
34. BUENOS AIRES S. Am. Argentina (Santa Cruz), Chile 4630'S 72 OO'W SL-18/19 Glacial (scour, damming)
(Aisen)
35. BUFFALO N. Am. Canada (NWT) 60 14'N 11526'W NP-II/12 Glacial (scour)
36. BUYR Asia China, Mongolia 47 48'N 117 42' NL-50
37. CARATASCA N. Am. Honduras 15 23'N 8355'W ND-16/17 Coastal (lagoon)
38. CASPIAN Asia/ Iran, USSR 4200'N 50oo'E NJ-39 NK-38,39 Tectonic (uplift)
Europe NL-38,39
39. CEDAR N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 53 18'N 10004'W NN-14 Glacial (scour)
40. CHAD Africa Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria 13 20'N 14oo'E ND-33 Tectonic (downwarp)
41. CHAMPLAIN N. Am. Canada, USA 44 35'N 7320'W NL-18 Tectonic (uplift, stream reversal)
42. CHANY Asia USSR (Russia) 54 50'N 7730'I;: NN-43,44
43. CHAO Asia China (Anhwei) 31 31'N 117 33'E NH-50 Fluviatile
44. CHAPALA N. Am. Mexico (Jalisco, Michoacan) 20 15'N 103OO'W NF-13
45. CHILKA Asia India (Orissa) 19 45'N 8525'E NE-45 Coastal (lagoon)
46. CHILWA Africa Malawi, Mozambique 1512'S 35 50'E SD-36
47. CHIQUITA S. Am. Argentina (Cordoba) 30 42'S 6236'W SH-20
48. CHIRIQUI N. Am. Panama 09 05'N 8205'W NC-17 Coastal (lagoon) ~
QC
49. CHURCHILL N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 56oo'N 108 19'W NN-12 NO-12 Glacial (scour) til
TABLE 2, continued. ~
CliC
="
LOCATION
USDMA
NO. NAME CONTINENT NATION(S) LATITUDE LONGITUDE MAP NO. GEOLOGIC ORIGIN
50. CLAIRE N. Am. Canada (Alberta) 5835'N 11205'W NO-12 Glacial (scour)
51. CLINTON COLDEN N. Am. Canada (NWT) 63 58'N 10728'W NP-I3/14 Glacial (scour)
52. COLHUE HUAPI S. Am. Argentina (Chubut) 45 30'S 6848'W SL-19
53. CONSTANCE Europe Austria, Switzerland, 47 35'N 0925'E NL-32 Glacial (scour and damming)
West Germany
54. CONTWOYTO N. Am. Canada (NWT) 65 36'N 1I040'W NQ-12-14 Glacial (scour)
55. CREE N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 57 29'N 10633'W NO-13 Glacial (scour)
56. CROSS N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 54 43'N 9734'W NN-14 Glacial (scour)
57. DAUPHIN N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 51 15'N 9946'W NM-14 Glacial (scour)
58. DEAD Asia Israel, Jordan 31 30'N 35 30'E NH-36 Tectonic (graben)
59. DESCHAMBAULT N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 54 46'N 10328'W NN-13 Glacial (scour)
60. DORE N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 5446'N 107 18'W NN-13 Glacial (scour)
61. DUBAWNT N. Am. Canada (NWT) 63 07'N 101 24'W NQ-I3/14 Glacial (scour)
62. EAU CLAIRE N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 5609'N 7424'W NN-18 NO-18 Glacial (scour)
63. EBI Asia China (Sinkiang) 44 55'N 8255'E NL-44
64. EDWARD Africa Uganda, Zaire 00 21 'S 29 35'E SA-35 Tectonic (graben)
65. EGRIDIR Asia Turkey 38 02'N 30 53'E NJ-36
.66. ENNADAI N. Am. Canada (NWT) 60 57'N 101 18'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour) ~
67. ENRIQUILLO N. Am. Dominican Republic 18 27'N 71 39'W NE-19
68. ERIE N. Am. Canada, USA 4209'N 81 15'W NK-17 Glacial (scour) ~
69. ESKIMO NORTH N. Am. Canada (NWT) 69 23'N 131 54'W NR-7-9 Coastal (lagoon)
70. ESKIMO SOUTHERN N. Am. Canada (NWT) 68 53'N 13300'W NR-7-9 Coastal (lagoon) ==
~
71. EVANS N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 50 53'N 7656'W NM-18 Glacial (scour) ::c
72. EVORON Asia USSR (Russia) 51 28'N 136 30'E NM-53 ~
73. EYRE Oceania Australia (South Australia) 2830'S 13720'E SH-53, SG-53 Tectonic (uplift, stream reversal) ~
74. FAGNANO S. Am. Argentina (Tierra del Fuego) 5438'S 6800'W SN-18/19 Z
Chile (Magallanes ~
75. FAGUIBINE Africa Mali 1645'N 0354'W NE-30 0
76: FERGUSON N. Am. Canada (NWT) 69 25'N 105 15'W NR-12-14 ::c
~
n FLATHEAD N. Am. USA (Montana) 4751'N 1140TW NL-II, NM-II
78. FROBISHER N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 56 22'N 108 I5'W NO-12,13 Glacial (scour)
79. FROME Oceania Australia (South Australia) 30 44'S 139 48'E SH-54 Tectonic (uplift, stream reversal)
80. GAIRDNER Oceania Australia (South Australia) 31 35'S 13600'E SH-53 SI-53
81. GARRY N.-Am. Canada (NWT) 65 54'N 10008'W NQ-12-14 Glacial (scour)
82. GENEVA Europe France, Switzerland 46 25'N 0630'E NL-32 Glacial (scour and damming)
83. GODS N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 5441 'N 94 I3'W NN-15 Glacial (scour)
84. GOOSE N. Am. USA (California, Oregon) 41 55'N 120 25'W NK-IO Tectonic (graben)
85. GRAND N. Am. Canada (Newfoundland) 48 52'N 5734'W NM-21
86. GRAS N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6430'N 110 31'W NQ-12-14 Glacial (scour)
87. GREAT BEAR N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6600'N 12056'W NQ-9/1O Glacial (scour)
88. GREAT SALT N. Am. USA (Utah) 41 IO'N 112 30'W NK-12 Tectonic (block-faulting)
89. GREAT SLAVE N. Am. Canada (NWT) 61 47'N 113 43'W NP-II/12 Glacial (scour)
90. GUILLAUME-DELISLE N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 56 15'N 7620'W NO-18 Coastal (lagoon)
91. HAMMAR Asia Iraq 30 50'N 47 10'E NH-38
92. HAR Asia Mongolia 48 06'N 93 12'E NM-46
93. HAR US Asia Mongolia 4800'N 92 IO'E NL-46, NM-46
94. HAZEN N. Am. Canada (NWT) 81 47'N 7109'W NU-14-20
95. HELMAND Asia Afghanistan, Iran 31 OO'N 61 IO'E NH-41
96. HOTIAH N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6504'N 118 29'W NQ-II/12 Glacial (scour)
97. HOVSGOL Asia Mongolia 51 OO'N 10030'E NM-47
98. HULUN Asia China (Inner Mongolia) 4900'N 117 2TE NM-50 Fluviatile
99. HUNGTZE Asia China (Anhwei, Kiangsu) 33 18'N 118 41'E NI-50 Fluviatile
100. HURON N. Am. Canada, USA 4500'N 8115'W NL-17 Glacial (scour)
101. HYARGAS Asia Mongolia 49 12'N 93 24'E NM-46
102 ILIAMNA N. Am. USA (Alaska) 59 30'N 15500'W NO-5/6
103. ILMEN Europe USSR (Russia) 58 17'N 31 20'E NO-36
104. IMANDRA Europe USSR (Russia) 67 30'N 3300'E NQ-36-38 NR-38 Glacial (scour)
105. INARI Europe Finland 6900'N 28 OO'E NR-35-37
106. ISLAND N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 53 49'N 9430'W NN-15 Glacial (scour)
107. ISSYKKUL Asia USSR (Kirghizia) 42 25'N 77 15'E NK-44,43 Tectonic (graben)
108. ISTADA Asia Afghanistan 32 32'N 67 57'E NI-42
109. IZABAL N. Am. Guatemala 15 30'N 89 IO'W ND-16
110. KAMILUKUAK N. Am. Canada (NWT) 62 20'N 10141'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour)
Ill. KAMIN AK N. Am. Canada (NWT) 62 11 'N 95 05'W NP-15/16 Glacial (scour)
112. KAMINURIAK N. Am. Canada (NWT) 62 59'N 9541'W NP-15/16 Glacial (scour)
113. KAOYU Asia China (Anhwei, Kiangsu) 32 50'N 11915'E NI-50 Fluviatile
114. KASBA N. Am. Canada (NWT) 60 18'N 102 l1'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour)
115. KHANKA Asia China, USSR 45 OO'N 13224'E NL-52,53
IJ.6. KIVU Africa Rwanda, Zaire 0200'S 29 10'E SA-35 Tectonic (graben) and
Volcanic (damming)
NJ-47 ~
117. KOKO Asia China (Tsinghai) 37 OO'N 10020'E
118. KULUNDINSKOE Asia USSR (Russia) 53 OO'N 79 36'E NN-44 >
::c
119. KURISCHES Europe USSR (Lithuania, Russia) 55 OO'N 21 OO'E NN-34 Coastal (lagoon)
~
120. KYARING Asia China (Tibet) 31 10'N 88 15'E NH-45 Tectonic ~
121. KYOGA Africa Uganda 01 30'N 3300'E NA-36 Tectonic (uplift, stream
reversal) ~
122. LADOGA Europe USSR (Russia) 6100'N 31 30'E NO-36 NP-35/ 36 Glacial (scour) and >
~
Tectonic (uplift) ~
123. LESSER SLAVE N. Am. Canada (Alberta) 55 26'N 11524'W NN-11 r:n
124. LLANQUIHUE S. Am. Chile (Llanquihue, Osorno) 41 08'S 72 48'W SK-18/19
125. LOBSTICK N. Am. Canada (Newfoundland) 54 02'N 64 59'W NN-20 Glacial (scour) 0
~
126. LOP Asia China (Sinkiang) 40 30'N 9030'E NK-46
"'"'l
127.
128.
129.
LOWER SEAL
LUANG
MACKAY
N. Am.
Asia
N. Am.
Canada (Quebec)
Thailand
Canada (NWT)
56 31 'N
07 30'N
63 55'N
7342'W
100 15'E
11102'W
NO-18
NB-47
NP-11/12
Glacial (scour)
Coastal (lagoon)
Glacial (scour)
=
~
149. NAM Asia China (Tibet) 300 45'N 90 0 30'E NH-46 Tectonic
150. NAMAK Asia Iran 34 30'N 51 50'E NI-39
151. NETILLING N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6630'N 7030'W NQ-17-20 Glacial (scour)
152. NGORING Asia China (Tsinghai) 3455'N 98oo'E NI-47
153. NICARAGUA N. Am. Nicaragua II 30'N 8530'W NC-16, ND-16 Tectonic and Volcanic
(damming)
154. NIPIGON N. Am. Canada (Ontario) 49 50'N 8831'W NM-16 Glacial (scour)
155. NIPISSING N. Am. Canada (Ontario) 46 16'N 7946'W NL-17 Glacial (scour)
156. NONACHO N. Am. Canada (NWT) 61 47'N 10928'W NP-I/12 Glacial (scour)
157. NUELTIN N. Am. Canada (Manitoba, NWT) 60 12'N 9935'W NP-13/14 NO-14 Glacial (scour)
158. NYASA Africa Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania 1200'S 34 30'E SC-36 SD-36 Tectonic (graben)
159. ODER Europe East Germany, Poland 53 46'N 1414'E NN-33 Coastal (lagoon)
160. OKEECHOBEE N. Am. USA (Florida) 26 57'N 80 52'W NG-17 Tectonic (uplift)
16I. OLING Asia China (Tsinghai) 3452'N 97 30'E NI-47
162. ONEGA Europe USSR (Russia) 61 30'N 3545'E NP-35/36, 37/38 Glacial (scour)
163. ONTARIO N. Am. Canada, USA 43 39'N 77 4TW NK-18 Glacial (scour)
164. OULU Europe Finland 6420'N 27 15'E NQ-33-35 ~
165. PAIJANNE Europe Finland 61 35'N 25 30'E NP-35/36 Tectonic (faulting) and
Glacial (scour) ~
166. PANGONG Asia China (Tibet), 33 45'N 7843'E NI-44 Tectonic (graben) and
India (Jammu and Kashmir) Glacial (scour) ==
t'!'j
167. PATOS S. Am. Brazil (Rio Grande do SuI) 31 06'S 51 15'W SH-22 Coastal (lagoon) ~
168. PAYNE N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 59 26'N 7408'W NO-18 Glacial (scour) t::l
169. PEIPUS Europe USSR (Estonia, Russia) 57 19'N 30 52'E NO-36 t'!'j
170. PETER POND N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 55 57'N 10850'W NN-12 NO-12 Glacial (scour) Z
17 I. PIELINEN Europe Finland 63 15'N 2940'E NP-35/36 t::l
172. PLAYGREEN N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 5403'N 9804'W NN-14 Glacial (scour) 0
173. POINT N. Am. Canada (NWT) 65 17'N 113 14'W NQ-II/l2 Glacial (scour) ~
174. POMO Asia China (Tibet), 28 35'N 90 20'E NH-46 Tectonic ~
175. PONTCHARTRAIN N. Am. USA (Louisiana) 30 13'N 90 OTW NH-15 Fluviatile (deltic levee)
176. POOPO S. Am. Bolivia 1845'S 670TW SE-20 Tectonic
177. POYANG Asia China (Kiangsi) 2900'N 116 25'E NH-50 Fluviatile (lateral damming)
178. PRINCESS MARY N. Am. Canada (NWT) 63 57'N 97 39' NP-I3/14 Glacial (scour)
179. PYA Europe USSR (Russia) 6605'N 30 58'E NQ-36-38
180. PYRAMID N. Am. USA (Nevada) 4002'N 11950'W NK-II Tectonic (graben)
181. RAINY N. Am. Canada, USA 48 42'N 930TW NM-15 Glacial (scour)
182. RED N. Am. USA (Minnesota) 48 02'N 9455'W NM-15
183. REINDEER N. Am. Canada (Manitoba, 57 18'N 10222'W NO-I3,14 Glacial (scour)
Saskatchewan)
184. RONGE N. Am. Canada (Manitoba, 55 08'N 10456'W NN-13 Glacial (scour)
Saskatchewan)
185. RUDOLF Africa Ethiopia, Kenya 03 30'N 3600'E NA-36,37 NB-36,37 Tectonic (graben, syn-
clinal folding)
186. RUKWA Africa Tanzania 0800'S 3225'E SC-36 Tectonic (graben)
187. SAIMAA Europe Finland 61 15'N 28 15'E NP-35/36 Glacial (scour) and
Tectonic (uplift)
188. SAINT CLAIR N. Am. Canada, USA 42 28'N 8240'W NK-17 Glacial (scour)
189. SAINT-JEAN N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 48 35'N 72 02'W NM-18,19 Glacial (scour)
190. SAKAMI N. Am. Canada (Quebec) 53 15'N 7645'W NN-18 Glacial (scour)
19I. SALTON N. Am. USA (California) 33 13'N 115 51'W NI-II Fluviatile
192. SAN MARTIN S. Am. Argentina (Santa Cruz), 48 52'S no40'W SM-18/19 Glacial (scour,
Chile (Aisen) damming)
193. SANDY N. Am. Canada (Ontario) 53 01 'N 9303'W NN-15 Glacial (scour)
194. SAP Asia Kampuchea 1300'N 10400'E ND-48/49 Fluviatile
195. SASYKKOL Asia USSR (Kazakhstan) 46 35'N 81 OO'E NL-44
196. SCUTARI Europe Albania, Yugoslavia 42 IO'N 19 15'E NK-34 Solution (karst) and
Tectonic (faulting)
197. SEG Europe USSR (Russia) 63 18'N 33 45'E NP-35-36
198. SELAWIK N. Am. USA (Alaska) 66 30'N 16009'W NQ-3/4 Coastal (lagoon)
199. SELETYTENIZ Asia USSR (Kazakhstan) 53 15'N 73 I5'E NN-43
200. SELWYN N. Am. Canada (NWT, Saskatchewan) 6002'N 10428'W NP-12/13 Glacial (scour)
201. SEUL N. Am. Canada (Ontario) 50 23'N 9225'W NM-15 Glacial (scour)
202. SEVAN Europe USSR (Armenia) 4020'N 4520'E NK-38
203. SHAMO Africa Ethiopia 05 50'N 3740'E NB-37
204. SIMCOE N. Am. Canada (Ontario) 44 25'N 7923'W NL-17 Glacial (scour)
205. SNOWBIRD N. Am. Canada (NWT) 6040'N 10256'W NP-I3/14 Glacial (scour)
206. SOUTHERN INDIAN N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 57 06'N 9846'W NO-14 Glacial (scour)
207. SOUTH HENIK N. Am. Canada (NWT) 61 27'N 9722'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour)
208. SUPERIOR N. Am. Canada, USA 47 33'N 8746'W NL-16,15 NM-16 Glacial (scour) and t""4
Tectonic (synclinal folding) >
~
209. TAHOE N. Am. USA (California, Nevada) 39 06'N 12002'W NJ-IO Tectonic (graben)
210. TAl Asia Fluviatile ~
China (Chekiang, Kiangsu) 31 15'N 120 IO'E NH-51 ~
211. TAKIYUAK N. Am. Canada (NWT) 66 18'N 11305'W NQ-lIj12 Glacial (scour)
212. TANA AFrica Ethiopia 12 IO'N 3720'E NC-37 ND-37 t""4
213. TANGANYIKA Africa Burundi, Tanzania, Zaire, Zambia 0600'S 2930'E SA-35 SB-35,36 Tectonic (graben) >
~
SC-36 ~
214. TANGRA Asia China (Tibet) 31 OO'N 8622'E NH-45 Tectonic rJJ
215. TATHLINA N. Am. Canada (NWT) 60 32'N 11733'W NP-ll/12 Glacial (scour)
216. TAUPO Oceania New Zealand (North Island) 38 50'S 175 56'E SJ-60 Volcanic (caldera) and 0
~
Tectonic (faulting)
217. TAYMYR Asia USSR (Russia) 74 30'N 10230'E NS-46-48 1003
218. TEBESJUAK N. Am. Canada (NWT) 63 46'N 99 OO'W NP-I3/14 Glacial (scour) :=
~
219. TENGIZ Asia USSR (Kazakhstan) 50 24'N 68 57'E NM-42
220. TERINAM Asia China (Tibet) 31 06'N 85 35'E NH-45 Tectonic
Coastal (lagoon)
~
221. TERMINOS N. Am. Mexico (Campeche) 18 37'N 91 33'W NE-15 0
222. TESHEKPUK N. Am. USA (Alaska) 70 35'N 15326'W NR-5/6 ~
223. TITICACA S. Am. Bolivia, Peru 1548'S 6924'W SD-19 Tectonic (uplift, faulting) t""4
224. TOBA Asia Indonesia (Sumatra Island) 02 35'N 9840'E NA-47 Volcanic (caldera) and t:l
Tectonic (faulting)
225. TOP Europe USSR (Russia) 65 4O'N 3200'E NQ-36-38 Glacial (scour)
226. TORRENS Oceania Australia (South Australia) 3100'S 137 50'E SH-53 Tectonic (graben)
227. TROUT N. Am. Canada (NWT) 60 34'N 12116'W NP-9/10 Glacial (scour)
228. TULEMALU N. Am. Canada (NWT) 62 56'N 9927'W NP-13/14 Glacial (scour)
229. TUMBA Africa Zaire 00 48'S 1803'E SA-34
230. TUNGTING Asia China (Hunan) 29 18'N 112 45'E NH-50 Fluviatile (lateral damming)
231. TUZ Asia Turkey 38 45'N 33 25'E NJ-36
232. UBINSKOE Asia USSR (Russia) 55 30'N 8005'E NN-44
233. ULUNGUR Asia China (Sinkiang) 4720'N 87 IO'E NL-45
234. UPEMBA Africa Zaire 08 36'S 2626'E SC-35
235. URMIA Asia Iran 37 4O'N 4530'E NJ-38 Tectonic (block-faulting)
236. UVS Asia Mongolia 50 20'N 92 45'E NM-46
237. VAN Asia Turkey 38 33'N 4246'E NJ-38
238. VANERN Europe Sweden 58 55'N 13 30'E NO-32/33 Glacial (scour) and
Tectonic (uplift)
239. VATTERN Europe 58 24'N 1436'E NO-32/33 Glacial (scour) and ~
Sweden QC
Tectonic (uplift) IC
~
\Q
=
TABLE 2, continued.
LOCATION
USDMA
NO. NAME CONTINENT NATION(S) LATITUDE LONGITUDE MAP NO. GEOLOGIC ORIGIN
240. VICTORIA Africa Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda Olooo'S 3300'E NA36,SA-3 Tectonic (uplift, stream
damming)
241. VIEDMA S. Am. Argentina (Santa Cruz) 49 35'S 72 35'W SM-18/19 Glacial (scour,
damming) ~
242. VYG Europe USSR (Russia) 63 4O'N 344O'E NP-37/38
243. WEISHAN Asia China (Kiangsu, Shantung) 34 35'N 117 13' NI-50 ~
244. WHOLDAIA N. Am. Canada (NWT) 60 43'N 1040TW NP-I3/14 Glacial (scour)
245. WINNEBAGO N. Am. USA (Wisconsin) 4400'N 8825'W NL-16 ==
t'!'j
246. WINNIPEG N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 5231'N 9747'W NN-14, NM-14 Glacial (scour) ~
247. WINNIPEGOSIS N. Am. Canada (Manitoba) 52 35'N 10009'W NN-14, NM-14 Glacial (scour) 0
248. WOLLASTON N. Am. Canada (Saskatchewan) 58 14'N 103 ITW NO-13 Glacial (scour) t'!'j
249. WOODS N. Am. Canada, USA 49 15'N 9439'W NM-15 Glacial (scour) Z
250. YAMDROK Asia China (Tibet) 29 00'N 90 4O'E NH-46 Tectonic 0
251. YATHKYED N. Am. Canada (NWT) 624O'N 9752'W NP-I3/14 Glacial (scour) 0
252. ZAYSAN Asia USSR (Kazakhstan) 4800'N 84 oo'E NL-44,45 NM-44,45 ~
~
253. ZILING Asia China (Tibet) 31 50'N 8900'E NH-45 Tectonic
LARGE LAKES OF THE WORLD 391
For irregularly shaped lakes this point does not GEOLOGIC ORIGIN NO. OF PERCENT
necessarily lie within the lake outline. The area of OF LAKE BASIN LAKES OF TOTAL
each lake, the primary criterion for inclusion, is Glacial 102 40.31
given with other morphometric data in Table 3. Tectonic 37 14.63
Sixty-four nations contain or share with another Coastal 20 7.91
country one or more of the large lakes (Figures Fluviatile 10 3.95
1-9). Table 4 presents a breakdown by continent Volcanic 2 0.79
Solution I 0.40
and nation for these bodies of water. Distribution Unknown 81 32.01
by continent is summarized below:
TOTAL 253 100.00
397
F
F
F
79
60
=
t'!'j
107. ISSYKKUL 6,240 1,608 320 702 1,738 169/56 760 S/F
108. ISTADA 520 2,135 22/11 S
109. IZABAL 590 8 18 48/24 F
110. KAMILUKUAK 638 266 43/32 222 F 143
III. KAMIN AK 600 53 60/22 495 F 19
112. KAMINURIAK 550 92 80/23 456 F 14
113. KAOYU 700 15 40/24 F
114. KASBA 1,341 336 80/38 344 F 165
115. KHANKA 4,000-4,400 69 10 18.5 97/64 F
116. KIVU 2,220 1,460 240 480 333 97/48 F
117. KOKO 4,460 3,197 38 (67) 105/64 S
118. KULUNDINSKOE 728 95 5 38/29 S
119. KURISCHES 1,620 <I 10 90/45 S
120. KYARING 670 4,708 64j16 F n
121. KYOGA 4,430 1,036 6 8 90/25 F
122. LADOGA 18,130 4 52 230 908 209j129 930 F ~
123. LESSER SLAVE 1,169 577 21 97/19 264 F 104
124. LLANQUIHUE 800 52 350 35/40 F =::
t'!'j
125.
126.
LOBSTICK
LOP
511
3,010
457
768 2 5
45/20
97/40
246 F
S
131
::c
127. LOWER SEAL 639 F 71
0
576 290 71/16 t'!'j
128. LUANG 1,290 <I I 80/24 S Z
129. MACKAY 1,061 431 119/24 592 F 62 0
130. MAI-NDOMBE 2,070-8,210 340 5 10-12 (41) 145/40 F 0
131. MALAREN 1,140 <I 64 10 113/40 F ::c
132. MANAGUA 1,040 37 80 61/26 F ~
133. MANITOBA 4,625 248 28 17 198/48 810 F 152
134. MANOUANE 584 500 54/28 297 F 161
135. MANZALA 1,360 <I I 56/23 S
136. MARACAIBO 13,010 <I 60 280 274j121 S
137. MARTRE 1,776 265 76/35 352 F 108
138. MELVILLE 3,069 <I 256 (313) 192/36 528 S 61
139. MICHIGAN 57,750 118,100 177 85 282 4,920 494/190 2,670 F
140. MICHIKAMAU 2,030 460 80 (65) 102/48 629 F 115
141. MILLE LACS 540 381 II 29/23 F
142. MINTO 761 190 98/24 343 F 58
143. MIRIM 2,970 <I 10 177/40 S
144. MISTASSINI 2,335 372 183 (170) 158/26 770 F 39
145. MOOSE 1,367 255 68/48 573 F 175
146. MWERU 4,350 922 7 37 32 113/48 340 F
147. NAHUEL HUAPI 550 767 438 72/8 F
148. NAKNEK 630 10 64/13 F
149. NAM 2,500 4,627 80/56 S
150. NAMAK 750 790 I 64/50 S
151. NETILLING 5,542 30 123/105 1,004 F 8
152. NGORING 650 4,270 41/33 F
153. NICARAGUA 8,150 32 70 108 161/72 F
154. NIPIGON 4,848 320 165 (320) 105/80 720 F 167
155. NIPISSING 833 196 22 71/56 245 F 91
156. NONACHO 784 354 97/27 716 F 18
157. NUELTIN 2,279 278 143/44 F 13
158. NYASA 22,490 65,000 475 273 706 6,140 579/80 1,500 F
159. ODER 900 <I 9 74/48 S
160. OKEECHOBEE 1,810 6 6 56/48 263 F
161. OLING 570 4,270 41/25 F
162. ONEGA 9,700 33 120 292 245/90 F
163. ONTARIO 19,000 70,000 75 86 245 1,637 311/85 1,168 F 68
164. OULU 900 23,310 122 38 64/29 F
165. PAIJANNE 1,090 26,480 78 93 137/32 2,450 F
166. PANGONG 600 4,248 43 209/16 S/F
167. PATOS 10,140 <I 5 260/60 S/F
168. PAYNE 533 130 84/16 408 F 107
169. PEl PUS 4,300 48,000 30 15 25 77/48 F
170. PETER POND 778 9,713 421 13.7 24 62/23 180 F 138
171. PIELINEN 850 94 49 100/29 F
172. PLAYGREEN 657 217 79/19 317 F 173
173. POINT 701 375 99/23 445 F 99 t""
174. POMO 880 4,936 32/14 F >
~
175. PONTCHARTRAIN 1,620 I 5 66/40 S
~
176. POOPO 1,340 3,686 3 2 90/32 S /'!l!j
177. POYANG 3,350 10 20 145/64 F
178. PRINCESS MARY 524 116 45/25 181 F 144 t""
179. PYA 660 101 15 49 48/24 F
~
>
180. PYRAMID 450-570 2,650 1,159 54 101 48/19 S trl
181. RAINY 940 338 34 87/26 747 F 101 rJ).
182. RED 1,170 358 9 64/40 F
183. REINDEER 6,650 64,750 219 (585) 1,528 F 21
0
337 17 231/40 ~
184. RONGE 1,413 14,763 364 12.7 41 65/58 496 F 54
185. RUDOLF (187) S ~
6,400 427 73 298/60
186.
187.
RUKWA
SAIMAA
750-3,000
1,760
793
76
I
82 36
145/16
100/80
S
F
==
trl
188.
189.
SAINT CLAIR
SAINT-JEAN
1,113
1,003
17,900 175
98
3 6
62
4 42/39
52/34
272
170
F
F
51
103
:e
0
190. SAKAMI 592 195 110 62/18 520 F 22 ~
191. SALTON 950 -70 15 48/16 S t""
192. SAN MARTIN 1,010 200 170 103/22 F ~
193. SANDY 527 276 77/12 470 F 82
194. SAP 2,700-30,000 5 12 40 116/37 F
195. SASYKKOL 740 350 5 51/23 S
196. SCUTARI 360-600 5,490 5 5 60 1.9 44/14 207 F 135
197. SEG 910 114 97 32/32 F
198. SELAWIK 1,400 I 72/32 S
199. SELETYTENIZ 780 64 3 I.5 57/26 S
200. SELWYN 717 398 78/33 406 F 34
201. SEUL 1,658 357 34 125/44 1,045 F 110
202. SEVAN 1,360 1,900 83 38 64/40 118 F
203. SHAMO 550 1,235 13 37/23 F
204. SIMCOE 744 219 41 47/29 184 F II
205. SNOWBIRD 505 359 64/18 220 F 23
206. SOUTHERN INDIAN 2,247 254 18 145/26 962 F 39
207. SOUTH HENIK 513 184 59/20 239 F 155
208. SUPERIOR 82,100 127,700 183 149 407 12,230 563/259 4,795 F 128
tM
209. TAHOE 500 1,899 249 501 124 35/19 125 F 'C
210. TAl 2,210 3 5 64/56 F til
TABLE 3, continued. eN
'C
<:l\
AREA (km 2) WATER
DEPTH (m) LENGTH( SHORELINE QUALITY
DRAINAGE ELEVATION VOLUME BREADTH LENGTH (F=fresh) ORIENTATION
NO. NAME LAKE BASIN BASIN (m) MEAN MAXIMUM (km 3) (km) (km) (S=salt ) (degrees)
o'
,r!
i
J
.,' I
FIG. 2. Distribution 0/ large lakes in A/rica.
LARGE LAKES OF THE WORLD 399
The published area of a specific large lake, as the islands, if present, can have varying degrees of
well as other morphometric data, can vt}ry con- influence on the amount of water surface. Great
siderably from author to author. For example, no Bear Lake in Northwest Territory, Canada has 114
less than 12 values have been printed for the area of major islands but their presence only diminishes the
the Caspian Sea (world's largest lake) ranging from water surface by 1.8 percent. In contrast, Lake
370,999 to 440,300 km 2, a difference of nearly 20 Toba on the Island of Sumatra, Indonesia, contains
percent. Further, Hutchinson (1957, page 168) lists a large volcanic island (Samosir) which comprises
an area of 508 km2 for Hornindalsvatn, a fjord lake about 70 percent of the enclosed area of the lake.
in Norway (which qualifies it as a large lake). Many lakes, particularly those characterized by a
However, most other sources indicate the lake is closed basin with no outlet, are subject to wide
likely only one-tenth this size. For this work the seasonal and year-to-year fluctuations in water
"most reliable" number was determined by con- level. Therefore their area and depth varies depend-
sidering the data source, date of publication, and ing on climatic conditions. Most of these lakes are
the consensus from the literature. These areas are saline and/ or playas which owe their heritage to
given in Table 3. higher pluvial lakes (often freshwater) that date
The area of the large lakes presented in Table 3 is back to Quaternary time when the glacial climate
the total area enclosed within the outline of the produced periods of increased rainfall and reduced
lake, including any islands. The number and size of evaporation. Concentrated in the western United
400 C.E.HERDENDORF
States, Middle East, central Asia, central-western AREA RANGE NO. OF AREA RANGE NO. OF
South America, northern and eastern Africa, and (km 2) LAKES (km 2) LAKES
-- -1-
southern and western Australia, these lakes are 500-1,000 113 10,000-11,000
remnants of the much larger pluvial lakes (Fair- 1,000-1,500 47 11,000-12,000 0
1,500-2,000 17 12,000-13,000 1
bridge 1968). As they were reduced in size, outlets 2,000-2,500 10 13,000-14,000 1
were often lost, resulting in dramatic fluctuations in 2,500-3,000 7 14,000-15,000 0
response to variations in rainfall (Lake Eyre, Aus- 3,000-4,000 10 15,000-20,000 3
tralia, has gone from a dry bed to a lake of over 4,000-5,000 10 20,000-30,000 6
7,000 km2 several times in the past century). Fluvi- 5,000-6,000 8 30,000-40,000 4
6,000-7,000 3 40,000-50,000 0
atile lakes, such as those located in the Mekong and 7,000-8,000 2 50,000-100,000 5
Yangtze river valleys of Asia, are also subject to 8,000-9,000 3 > 100,000 1
enormous seasonal variations. Where available, 9,000-10,000 1
data on ranges of area and depth for such lakes are
TOTAL 253
presented in Table 3.
The large lakes of the world range in area from Drainage basin area and shoreline length data
500 km2 (by definition) to 374,000 km2 Most ofthe are missing for more than half of the large lakes. It
large lakes are clustered at the small end of this is possible to obtain an estimate of these factors
range, with 45 percent of them being less than 1,000 from U.S. Defense Mapping Agency topographic
km 2 in area while less than ten percent are greater maps (I: 1,000,000 scale) and other larger scale
than 10,000 km2: maps. Shoreline lengths of most of the Canadian
LARGE LAKES OF THE WORLD 401
lakes were obtained using a Hewlett-Packard elec- vals. The influence of continental glaciers and
tronic digitizer and maps (based on 1:500,000 scale coastal processes is evident in the high concentra-
aeronautical charts) included in Gilliland et al. tion of lakes at elevations ranging from sea level to
(1973). 300 meters. In contrast, tectonic lakes are found at
Large lakes range in elevation from 393 meters both very low and very high elevations.
below sea level (Dead Sea, a graben depression on Detailed bathymetric information is perhaps the
the Israel-Jordan border) to 4,708 meters above sea most serious deficiency in our morphometric
level (Lake Kyaring, located along the north slope knowledge of large lakes. Without such infor-
of the Himalaya Mountains in Tibet). Only five of mation,estimates of lake volume are imprecise.
the 253 large lakes lie at elevations below sea level. Reconnaissance surveys, at least, have been con-
At the other extreme, only 21 lakes (8 percent) are ducted for most large lakes, so that the maximum
found at elevations above 1,500 meters. Most ofthe depths are known with a reasonable degree of
lakes are found between sea level and 500 meters assurance. Mean depth (z), however is essential for
(188 lakes or 74 percent of the lakes considered) or calculation of volume (V) based on the relationship
are between 500 and 1,500 meters (39 or 15 percent with surface area (A), where V = 'lAo A simple plot
of the lakes considered). Table 6 provides a more of maximum depth versus mean depth for large
detailed breakdown of the number of lakes and lakes with complete bathymetric surveys shows the
their combined areas at 100- and 500-meter inter- following relationships:
402 C.E.HERDENDORF
\
,
,
o 400
lI'US
'0'
.. ~
'.
~.
.."
r:;:::7
. ,.
...
I' -
I
,,"
, .,-.
,-.1190
MIL!S
with the lake area, this "maximum dimension" does Superior at 259 km have the next longest breadths.
provide a rough idea of the shape of the lake. Most of the large lakes of the world have lengths
Breadth or width is normally considered as the and breadths well under 100 km.
maximum length of a straight line connecting The top fifty lakes of the world based on area,
points on the lake shoreline at approximate right volume, and depth are listed in Table 8. The saline
angles to the line of maximum length. The orienta- Caspian Sea ranks highest in area and volume, but
tion of the lake is expressed in Table 3 as the appears third on the depth list. Excluding this
compass direction (0-180) of the line of maxi- giant, Lake Superior heads the area list while Lake
mum length. Baikal is first in volume and depth. It is interesting
The Caspian Sea, due to its immense size, has the to note that 32 of the 50 deepest lakes of the world
longest length and breadth measurements, 1,207 have a surface area of less than 500 km 2 and,
km and 483 km, respectively. Lakes Tanganyika at therefore, are not present on the list of large lakes.
676 km and Baikal at 635 km have the next longest Many of the small, deep lakes were formed by
lengths, while Lake Huron at 290 km (largely due glacial scour, particularly the fjord lakes of
to Georgian Bay), Aral Sea at 280 km, and Lake Norway.
LARGE LAKES OF THE WORLD 405
TABLE 4, continued.
Mean Percent Percent
Area Area Continent's World
Continent and Nation No. (km2) (km2) Lakes Lakes
North America
Canada 89 201,401 2,263 41.31 13.84
Canada, USA 8 193,760 24,220 39.74 13.31
Dominican Republic I 500 500 0.10 0.03
Guatemala I 590 590 0.12 0.04
Honduras I 1,110 1,1I0 0.23 0.08
Mexico 2 2,690 1,345 0.55 0.18
Nicaragua 2 9,190 4,595 1.88 0.63
Panama I 900 900 0.18 0.06
USA 17 77,473 4,557 15.89 5.32
--
TOTAL 122 487,614 3,997 100.00 33.49
Oceania
Australia 7 22,929 3,276 97.41 1.58
New Zealand I 610 610 2.59 0.04
--
TOTAL 8 23,539 2,942 100.00 1.62
South America
Argentina 5 5,700 1,140 12.44 0.39
Argentina, Chile 3 3,840 1,280 8.38 0.26
Bolivia I 1,340 1,340 2.92 0.09
Bolivia, Peru I 8,030 8,030 17.52 0.55
Brazil I 10,140 10,140 22.13 0.71
Brazil, Uruguay I 2,970 2,970 6.48 0.20
Chile 1 800 800 1.75 0.05
Venezuela 1 13,010 13,010 28.38 0.90
-- 3.15
TOTAL 45,830 3,274 100.00
-14-
GRAND TOTAL 253 1,456,149
WATER QUALITY characterizing the lakes, but are beyond the scope
Of the 253 large lakes of the world, most are fresh- of this paper (a follow-up inventory of this infor-
water (189 lakes, 75 percent). The remainder are mation is intended). The question of eutrophication
saline or grade from fresh to salt: of large lakes is an interesting one in that such lakes
do not age in the same way that small lakes
TOTAL MEAN undergo succession (Beeton and Edmondson 1972,
WATER NO. OF AREA AREA Sonzogni et al. 1981). The morphometric classifi-
QUALITY LAKES (km 2) (km 2) cation scheme developed by Odum (1971) may
Fresh (F) 189 853,432 4,516
serve as an alternate concept in understanding the
Salt (S) 59 499,237 8,462 eutrophication process in large lakes.
Mixed (F/S) __ 5_ 103,480 20,696
TOTAL 253 1,456,149 5,756
GLOBAL WATER DISTRIBUTION
Other water quality information such as trophic Nace (1964 and 1976) gives the following estimate
status, dissolved solids, and pH would be useful for of global water distribution:
408 C. E. HERDENDORF
PERCENT
WATER REGIME VOLUME
TABLE 6. Elevation of large lakes.
1. Surface water Elevation (m) No. Area (km 2) Mean Area (km 2)
freshwater lakes 860,000 125,000 0.009 -500 to --400 0
saline lakes 700,000 104,000 0.008
stream channels 1,250 0.0001
-400 to -300 1 1,020 1,020
-300 to -200 0
2. Subsurface water -200 to -100 0
soil moisture 130,000,000 67,000 0.005
groundwater 8,340,000 0.62
-100 to 0 4 383,140 95,785
3. lcecapsandglaciers 18,000,000 29,200,000 2.15
o to 100 71 291,188 4,066
100 to 200 31 311,064 10,034
4. Atmosphere 510,000,000 13,000 0.001 200 to 300 37 103,958 2,810
5. World Oceans 360,000,000 1,322,000,000 97.2 300 to 400 34 76,382 2,247
400 to 500 15 74,191 4,946
TOTAL 1,360,000,000 100.0 500 to 600 9 6,508 723
600 to 700 2 6,365 3,183
From these data it can be seen that, although the 700 to 800 6 42,660 7,110
lakes and inland seas of the world comprise 800 to 900 3 3,180 1,060
900 to 1,000 3 7,140 2,380
approximately 1,560,000 km 2 of surface area and 1,000 to 1,500 16 105,063 6,566
possess a volume of 229,000 km3, they only repre- 1,500 to 2,000 7 19,200 2,743
sent 0.017 percent of the global water resources. 2,000 to 2,500 1 520 520
The total number of world lakes is great (Welch 2,500 to 3,000 0
[1952] estimated that over 40,000 lakes are found in 3,000 to 3,500 1 4,460 4,460
North America alone, but more recent surveys 3,500 to 4,000 2 9,370 4,685
indicated that Canada alone may possess over a 4,000 to 4,500 5 4,480 896
4,500 to 5,000 5 6,260 1,252
million lakes); however, the vast majority of water
is concentrated in a relatively small number of large TOTAL 253 1,457,169 5,756
lakes. The 253 large lakes identified in this paper
Special thanks is given to Sandra Herdendorf and Lerman, A. (ed.). 1978. Lakes: Chemistry, Geology, and
Sirinimit Boonyuen for compiling data and proof- Physics. New York: Springer-Verlag.
ing tables, Theresa Gordon for digitizing lake Murray, J. 1910. Characteristics of lakes in general, and
perimeters for area and shoreline length, and their distribution over the surface of the globe. In
Ginger-Iyn Summer and Deborah Downey for Bathymetrical Survey of the Scottish Freshwater
typing the manuscript. Lochs, pp. 514-658, volume I. Edinburgh: Challenger
Office.
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