Mugalzhar

Mugalzhar
Мұғалжар / Мугоджары
Birch grove in the Mugalzhar
Highest point
Peak	Ulken Baktybay
Elevation	657 m (2,156 ft)
Coordinates	48°38′38″N 58°32′47″E / 48.64389°N 58.54639°E / 48.64389; 58.54639
Dimensions
Length	200 km (120 mi) N/S
Width	30 km (19 mi) E/W
Geography
Mugalzhar Location Show map of Kazakhstan Mugalzhar Mugalzhar (European Russia) Show map of European Russia
Location	Kazakhstan
Range coordinates	48°39′N 58°33′E / 48.650°N 58.550°E / 48.650; 58.550
Geology
Rock age(s)	Precambrian, Paleozoic
Rock type(s)	Sandstone, conglomerate, quartzite, schist, gneiss, granite, shale

Mugalzhar (Kazakh: Мұғалжар), also known as Mugodzhar Hills or Mugodzhar Range (Russian: Мугоджары),^[1] is a mountain range of moderate height in the Aktobe Region of northwestern Kazakhstan.

Stretching in a roughly north/south direction, the Mugalzhar is a southern prolongation of the Ural Mountains. The northernmost section a narrow ridge that branches into two almost parallel ridges separated by the gently undulating 20 kilometers (12 mi) Alabass Basin (Russian: Алабасская котловина).^[2]

The Mugalzhar has a length of about 200 kilometers (120 mi) with a width of 30 kilometers (19 mi). It stretches from the Or River (река Орь) as a narrow range that further south splits in two: the Eastern Mugalzhar and Western Mugalzhar. The highest point is 657 meters (2,156 ft) high Mount Ulken Baktybay (Boktybay [ru]), rising in the Eastern Mugalzhar.^[3][4][5]

Located at the southern end, the Shoshkakol Buirat is a spur of low hills reaching a height of 408 meters (1,339 ft).^[4] In the northern section, the wider Mugalzhar connects with the Guberlin Mountains.^[3]

The Mugalzhar forms the divide between the Caspian and Aral Sea basins.^[2] Some of the rivers having their sources in the Mugalzhar are Or, Emba, Irgiz, Zhylandysay, Bolgasyn and Kauylzhyr.^[4][3]

• Media related to Mugodzhar Hills at Wikimedia Commons