Oder River
The Oder is a
river in
Central Europe. It begins in the
Czech Republic and flows through western
Poland, later forming the northern 187 km of the border between Poland and
Germany, part of the
Oder-Neisse line. The river ultimately flows into the
Szczecin Lagoon north of
Szczecin and then into three branches that empty into the
Baltic Sea.
Encyclopedia
The
Oder is a
river in
Central Europe. It begins in the
Czech Republic and flows through western
Poland, later forming the northern 187 km of the border between Poland and
Germany, part of the
Oder-Neisse line. The river ultimately flows into the
Szczecin Lagoon north of
Szczecin and then into three branches that empty into the
Baltic Sea.
Names
The Oder is known by several names in different languages: .
Geography
The Oder is 854 km long: 112 in the Czech Republic, 742 in Poland and is the second longest river in Poland . It drains 118,861 km² of watershed, 106,056 of which are in Poland , 7,217 in the Czech Republic , and 5,587 in Germany . Channels connect it to the
Havel,
Spree,
Vistula system and Klodnica. It flows through
Silesian,
Opole,
Lower Silesian,
Lubusz, and
West Pomeranian voivodeships of Poland and the states of
Brandenburg and
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany.
The main branch empties into the
Szczecin Lagoon. The Szczecin Lagoon is bordered on the north by islands of
Usedom and
Wolin . Between these two islands, there is only a narrow channel going to the Bay of Pomerania, which forms a part of the Baltic Sea.
The largest city on the Oder River is
Wroclaw.
Navigation
The Oder is navigable over a large part of its total length, as far upstream as to the town of Kozle, where the river connects to the Gliwicki Canal. The upstream part of the river is canalized and permits larger barges to navigate between the industrial sites around the
Wroclaw area.
Further downstream the river is free flowing, passing the towns of
Eisenhüttenstadt and
Frankfurt . Downstream of Frankfurt the
Warta River forms a navigable connection with
Poznan and
Bydgoszcz for smaller vessels. At Hohensaaten the Havel-Oder-Wasserstrasse connects with the Berlin waterways again.
Near its mouth the Oder reaches the city of
Szczecin, a major maritime port. The river finally reaches the Baltic Sea through the
Szczecin Lagoon and the river mouth at Swinoujscie.
History
The river was known to the
Romans as the
Viadrus or
Viadua in Classical Latin, as it was a branch of the
Amber Road from the Baltic Sea to the
Roman Empire . During the Middle Ages, it was called the Odera
or Oddera in
Medieval Latin documents and was first mentioned in the Dagome iudex, which described the boundaries of early
Poland under Duke
Mieszko I ca. 990.
The Oder must have been an important trade route and human settlement axis as early as the 9th or 10th centuries as the documents mention many tribes living along the river. The Bavarian Geographer specifies the following peoples:
Silesians, Dadoshanie,
Opolanians, Lupiglaa, and Golenshitse in
Silesia and
Wolinians and Pyrzycans in
Western Pomerania. A document of the Bishopric of
Prague mentions Zlasane, Trebovyane, Poborane, and Dedositze in Silesia.
In the 13th century, the first
dams were built to protect agricultural lands.
After
World War II, the Oder and the Lusatian Neisse formed the
Oder-Neisse line, which was designated as the new border between Germany and Poland. The German populations east of these two rivers were
expelled westwards.
Cities
Main section:
- Ostrava - Bohumín - Racibórz - Kedzierzyn-Kozle - Krapkowice - Opole - Brzeg - Olawa - Jelcz-Laskowice - Wroclaw - Brzeg Dolny - Scinawa - Szlichtyngowa - Glogów - Bytom Odrzanski - Nowa Sól - Krosno Odrzanskie - Eisenhüttenstadt - Frankfurt - Slubice - Kostrzyn - Cedynia - Schwedt - Vierraden - Gartz - Gryfino - Szczecin - Police
Dziwna branch :
- Wolin - Kamien Pomorski - Dziwnów
Swina branch :
- Swinoujscie
Szczecin Lagoon:
- Nowe Warpno - Ueckermünde
Peene branch :
- Usedom - Lassan - Wolgast
Right tributaries
- Ostravice - Olza - Ruda - Bierawka - Klodnica - Czarnka - Mala Panew - Stobrawa - Widawa - Jezierzyca - Barycz - Krzycki Rów - Obrzyca - Jablonna - Pliszka - Olobok - Gryzynka - Warta with the Notec - Mysla - Kurzyca - Stubia - Rurzyca - Tywa - Plonia - Ina - Gowienica
Left tributaries
- Opava - Psina - Cisek - Olszówka - Stradunia - Osobloga - Prószkowski Potok - Nysa Klodzka - Olawa - Sleza - Bystrzyca - Sredzka Woda - Cicha Woda - Kaczawa - Slepca - Zimnica - Debniak - Biala Woda - Czarna Struga - Slaska Ochla - Zimny Potok - Bóbr - Olcha - Racza - Lusatian Neisse
See also
External links
-
- See Oder and Neisse Rivers. Peace Palace Library
