Strait 58646 224721146 2008-07-10T03:13:32Z Cosmic Latte 3190204 how did this not get caught? {{unreferenced|date=January 2008}} [[Image:Strait.svg|framed|Diagram of a strait]] A '''strait''' is a narrow, navigable [[channel of water]] that connects two larger navigable bodies of water. It most commonly refers to a channel of water that lies between two [[land mass]]es, but it may also refer to a navigable channel through a body of water that is otherwise not navigable, for example because it is too shallow, or because it contains an unnavigable [[reef]] or [[archipelago]]. The terms ''strait'', ''[[channel (geography)|channel]]'', ''passage'', ''[[Sound (geography)|sound]],'' and ''[[firth]]'' can be synonymous and interchangeable, although each is sometimes differentiated with varying senses. Many straits are economically important. Straits can lie on important [[shipping route]]s, and [[war]]s have been fought for control of these straits. Numerous artificial channels, called ''[[canal]]s'', have been constructed to connect two bodies of water over land. Although rivers and canals often form a bridge between two large lakes or a lake and a sea, and these seem to suit the formal definition of straits, they are not usually referred to as straits. Straits are typically much larger, wider structures. Straits are the duals of [[isthmus|isthmi]]. That is, while straits lie between two land masses and connect two larger bodies of water, isthmi lie between two bodies of water and connect two larger land masses. A strait is similar to an [[inlet]] although inlets typically pass through island land masses usually from a large body of water such as an ocean to a much smaller body such as a bay while straits pass through much larger land masses and connect much larger bodies of water such as seas and oceans. ==Well-known straits== {{Details|list of straits}} Well-known straits in the world include: *[[Palk strait]], between [[Bindi Land]] and [[Sri Lanka]], the location of [[Adam's Bridge|Ram Sethu]] and rich in natural resources *[[Strait of Dover]], between [[England]] and [[France]], which connects the [[North Sea]] with the [[English Channel]] *[[Strait of Gibraltar]], the only natural passage between the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and the [[Mediterranean Sea]] *[[Bosporus]] and the [[Dardanelles]], which connect the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]] and the [[Black Sea]] *[[Strait of Magellan]], connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans north of [[Tierra del Fuego]] *[[Bering Strait]] between [[Alaska]] and [[Siberia]], which connects the [[Pacific Ocean|Pacific]] and [[Arctic Ocean]]s *[[Strait of Hormuz]] connecting the [[Persian Gulf]] and the [[Oman Sea]], through which Persian Gulf [[petroleum]] is shipped to the world *[[Strait of Malacca]], between [[Peninsular Malaysia]] and [[Sumatra]], connecting the [[Indian Ocean]] with the [[South China Sea]], is one of the highest-volume shipping lanes. *[[Bass Strait]], which lies between mainland [[Australia]] and [[Tasmania]], and connects the [[Southern Ocean]] with the [[Pacific Ocean]]. *[[Cook Strait]], separating the North And South Islands of [[New Zealand]] * The Bab el Mandeb, connecting the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. * The [[Skagerrak]] and [[Kattegat]] which connect the North Sea to the Baltic Sea. ==See also== *[[Sound (geography)]] *[[United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]] {{Commonscat|Straits}} <!--Categories--> [[Category:Straits| ]] <!--Interlanguage links--> [[af:Seestraat]] [[ar:مضيق]] [[br:Strizh-mor]] [[bs:Moreuz]] [[bg:Проток]] [[ca:Estret]] [[cs:Průliv]] [[cy:Culfor]] [[da:Stræde (farvand)]] [[de:Meerenge]] [[et:Väin]] [[el:Πορθμός]] [[es:Estrecho]] [[eo:Markolo]] [[fa:تنگه]] [[fr:Détroit]] [[ko:해협]] [[hr:Tjesnac]] [[io:Stretajo]] [[id:Selat]] [[os:Донкъубал]] [[is:Sund]] [[it:Stretto]] [[he:מצר]] [[sw:Mlango wa bahari]] [[ku:Tengav]] [[la:Fretum]] [[hu:Szoros]] [[nl:Zeestraat]] [[ja:海峡]] [[pl:Cieśnina]] [[pt:Estreito]] [[ru:Пролив]] [[sl:Ožina]] [[fi:Salmi]] [[sv:Sund]] [[ta:நீரிணை]] [[vi:Eo biển]] [[uk:Протока]] [[zh:海峡]] [[tl:Kipot]]