In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “dry riverbed that only contains water during times of heavy rain”. Today it says “river valley or a wet”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-02. In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “dry riverbed that only contains water during times of heavy rain”. Today it says “river valley or a wet”.
We saved snapshots of this article over twenty years; you are reading the 2005 one. Red dashes: removed from Wikipedia since.Pale dots: rewritten; the numbered note shows what it says now.Red text: written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot.1 tap a number or a side note to jump between them
The opening as it read in 2005
A wadi is a dry riverbed that only contains water during times of heavy rain. The term "Wadi" is very widely found in Arabic place names.1Wadis tend to be associated with centers of human population because of the availability of sub-surface water.2In English the term "Wadi" is sometimes used interchangeably with " oasis ", which is correct linguistically, although many geographers and cartographers consider it an inaccurate usage. Crossing wide wadis at certain times of the year can be very dangerous, because of unexpected flash floods . Such flash floods cause numerous deaths each year in Saudi Arabia . The North African equivalent term is oued , although it is also used to refer to true rivers.3
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 16248679.
The opening as it stood in 2010 7 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Wadi in Nachal Paran, the Negev , Israel .Wadi ( wādī ; also: Vadi ) is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley .In some cases, it may refer to a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain or simply an intermittent stream .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 366897925.
The opening as it stood in 2015
Wadis in North-East Egypt Wadi Bani Khalid , Sharqiyah region, Oman Wadi in Nachal Paran, the Negev , Israel . 19th-century traveller's depiction of a caravan in a wadi ( Rudolf Hellgrew ) Wadi ( wādī ) is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley .In some instances, it may refer to a dry ( ephemeral ) riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain or simply an intermittent stream .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 669377909.
The opening as it stood in 2020 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
River valley, especially a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain Wadis in northeastern Egypt , North Africa Wadi ( ), alternatively wād ( ), North African Arabic Oued , is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley .In some instances, it may refer to a dry ( ephemeral ) riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs.Insight on the Scriptures .The term "wadi" (Arabic) is also used to designate a torrent valley ... whereas others are torrents during the rainy season but dry up completely during the rainless season. : |volume= has extra text ( help )
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 963962799.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
River valley, especially a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain For other uses, see Wadi (disambiguation) .Wadi Ghuweir Trail to Feynan, Jordan Wadi ( ), alternatively wād ( ), Maghrebi Arabic Oued , is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a river valley .In some instances, it may refer to a wet ( ephemeral ) riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Insight on the Scriptures . Vol. 2: Jehova – Zuzim and Index. The term "wadi" (Arabic) is also used to designate a torrent valley ... whereas others are torrents during the rainy season but dry up completely during the rainless season.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1174314204.
The opening as it stood in 2025 5 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Hydrological feature For other uses, see Wadi (disambiguation) .Wadi Ghuweir Trail to Feynan, Jordan Wadi ( / ˈ w ɒ d i / WOD-ee ; Arabic : وَادِي ) is a river valley or a wet ( ephemeral ) riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs.Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portions of alluvial fans and extend to inland sabkhas or dry lakes .Permanent channels do not exist, due to lack of continual water flow.Water percolates down into the stream bed, causing an abrupt loss of energy and resulting in vast deposition.Wadis may develop dams of sediment that change the stream patterns in the next flash flood .Wadis tend to be associated with centers of human population because sub-surface water is sometimes available in them.Nomadic and pastoral desert peoples will rely on seasonal vegetation found in wadis, even in regions as dry as the Sahara , as they travel in complex transhumance routes.The centrality of wadis to water – and human life – in desert environments gave birth to the distinct sub-field of wadi hydrology in the 1990s.Review of Wheater, Howard; Al Weshah, Radwan, Hydrology of Wadi systems -IHP Regional Network on Wadi Hydrology in the Arab Region , UNESCO – Technical documents in hydrology vol 55, SC.2002/WS/33,(2002).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1295249647. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “dry riverbed that only contains water during times of heavy rain”. Today it says “river valley or a wet”. Read the current article and compare.
2005
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined between 2005 and 2025.
Then
dry riverbed that only contains water during times of heavy rain
Now
river valley or a wet
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
