Tyukyan


The Tyukyan is a river in the Republic of Sakha in Russia. It is a left hand tributary of the Vilyuy, and is long, with a drainage basin of. There are no permanent settlements by the river, but its source is close to Eyik village in Olenyoksky District. After flowing across desolate areas it only reaches the inhabited Verkhnevilyuysky District about upstream from its mouth.
There are numerous thermokarst lakes in the lower Tyukyan river basin.

History

In 1634, Russian Cossacks, headed by Voin Shakhov, established a winter settlement at the confluence of the rivers Vilyuy and Tyukyan. This settlement served as the seat of administration of the surrounding area for several decades, after which it was moved to the Yolyonnyokh area down by the Vilyuy River.

Course

The Tyukyan has its source in the eastern part of the Central Siberian Plateau in a swampy area near the Tyung basin, just south of the Arctic Circle, at an elevation of about. It flows roughly southeastwards and eastwards. When it reaches the Central Yakutian Lowland it begins to meander strongly among swamps and small lakes, flowing roughly southwards, until it meets the left bank of the Vilyuy near Verkhnevilyuysk.
The main tributaries of the Tyukyan are the Tenkelyakh and the Chilli. The Tyukyan freezes between mid October and late May.