Rigvedic rivers
（重定向自Sapta Sindhu）
![Geography of the Rigveda; the extent of the Swat and Cemetery H cultures are indicated.](/Images/godic/202502/09/Rigvedic_geography2455.jpg")
![Kabul River near Jalalabad](/Images/godic/202502/09/Kabulriverinjaa12455.jpg")
![Swat River in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa](/Images/godic/202502/09/Swat_River_Pakistan2455.JPG")
![Harī Rūd in Afghanistan](/Images/godic/202502/09/Jam_Qasr_Zarafshan2455.jpg")
Rivers, such as the Sapta Sindhavah ("seven rivers") Sanskrit:सप्त सिन्धव: , play a prominent part in the hymns of the Rigveda, and consequently in early Vedic religion. It may have been derived from an older Proto-Indo-Iranian hydronym, as a cognate name, hapta həndu, exists in the Avestan language.