TURKANA LAKE

Coordinates: 3°35′N 36°7′E

Lake type            Saline, monomictic, alkaline, endorheic

Primary inflows Omo River, Turkwel River, Kerio River

Primary outflows             Evaporation

Catchment area                130,860 km²

Basin countries Ethiopia, Kenya

Max. length        290 km

Max. width         32 km 20 mi

Surface area       6,405 km2 2,473 sq mi

Average depth  30.2 m

Max. depth        109 m

Water volume   203.6 km³

Surface elevation             360.4 m

Islands  North Island, Central Island, South Island volcanic

Settlements       El Molo, Loyangalani, Kalokol, Eliye Springs, Ileret, Fort Banya.

The lake was named Lake Rudolf in honour of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria by Count Sámuel Teleki de Szék and his second-in-command Lieutenant Ludwig Ritter Von Höhnel, a Hungarian and an Austrian,on 6 March 1888. They were the first Europeans to have recorded visiting the lake after a long safari across East Africa. Natives who live around Lake Turkana include the Turkana, Rendille, Gabbra, Daasanach, Hamar Koke, Karo, Nyagatom, Mursi, Surma and Molo peoples. For the location of many of these peoples, refer to the dialect map in the article.

J. W. Gregory reported in The Geographical Journal of 1894 that it had been called 'Basso Narok'. This means "Black Lake" in the Samburu language. Likewise, Lake Stefanie is "Basso Naibor" in Samburu, meaning "White Lake". The Samburu are among the dominant tribes in the lake Turkana region when the explorers came." What the native form of this phrase was, what it might mean, and in which language is not clear. The lake kept its European name during the colonial period of British East Africa. After the independence of Kenya, the president, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, renamed it in 1975 after the Turkana, the predominant tribe there.

At some unknown time, the lake acquired an alternate name as the Jade Sea from its turquoise colour seen approaching from a distance. The colour comes from algae that rise to the surface in calm weather. This is likely also a European name. The Turkana refer to the lake as Anam Ka'alakol, meaning "the sea of many fish". It is from the name Ka'alakol that Kalokol, a town on the western shore of Lake Turkana, east of Lodwar, derives its name. The previous indigenous Turkana name for Lake Turkana was Anam a Cheper. The area still sees few visitors, being a two-day drive from Nairobi. The lake is also an imaginary boundary of the Rendille and Borana and Oromo to the Turkana land. The area is primarily clay-based and is more alkaline than seawater.