Tarn (lake)

"Tarns" redirects here. For the hamlet in England, see Tarns, Cumbria.

Glacial action forming a cirque which may host a tarn

A tarn (or corrie loch) is a mountain lake, pond or pool, formed in a cirque excavated by a glacier. A moraine may form a natural dam below a tarn.

Etymology

Verdi Lake in the Ruby Mountains of Nevada

The word is derived from the Old Norse word tjörn meaning pond. Its more specific use as a mountain lake emerges as it is the commonly used term for all ponds in the upland areas of Northern England. Here, it retains a broader use, referring to any small lake or pond, regardless of its location and origin (e.g. Talkin Tarn).

In Scandinavian languages, a tjern or tjärn, tärn or tjørn is a small natural lake, often in a forest or with vegetation closely surrounding it or growing into the tarn.

Gallery

• 
  Lake Tear of the Clouds (tarn) in the Adirondack Mountains, New York, photo c. 19th century
• 
  Veľké Hincovo, the largest and deepest tarn in Slovakia
• 
  Lousy Lake (tarn) in North Cascades National Park, Picket Range, Washington, USA
• 
  Lakes of the Clouds, below Mount Washington in the White Mountains
• 
  Banderishki Chukar seen from the Banderishki Lakes (tarns), Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria
• 
  A view to Gergiysko lake (tarn) and Sinanitsa Peak, Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria
• 
  The Dreadful Lake (tarn), Rila Mountain, Bulgaria
• 
  The Seven Rila Lakes (tarns), Rila Mountain, Bulgaria
• 
  Marichini lakes (tarns), the origin of the Maritsa river seen from Musala peak, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria
• 
  Sea Lion Tarn on Livingston Island in Antarctica

See also

• Pond
• Proglacial lake

External links

• Media related to Tarn (lake) at Wikimedia Commons
• The dictionary definition of tarn at Wiktionary