Danubian Flat
Encyclopedia
The Danubian Flat also translated as Danubian Plain, is the south-western, more flat, part of the Danubian Lowland
Danubian Lowland
The Danubian Lowland or Danube Lowland is the name of the part of Little Alföld situated in Slovakia, located between the Danube, the Little Carpathians and all other parts of the Western Carpathians....

 in Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

.

The border with the Danubian Hills
Danubian Hills
The Danubian Hills , also translated as Danubian Upland, is the north-eastern, more mountain-like, part of the Danubian Lowland in Slovakia....

 runs approx. along the line Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...

 – Senec – Sereď
Sered
Sereď is a town in southern Slovak Republic near Trnava, on the right bank of the Váh River on the Danubian Lowland. It has аpproximately 17,000 inhabitants.It has a hotel, cinema, culture house, many restaurants and confectioner's shops.-Geography:...

 – Nové Zámky
Nové Zámky
Nové Zámky is a town in southwestern Slovakia.-Geography:The town is located on the Danubian Lowland, on the Nitra River, at an altitude of 119 metres. It is located around 100 km from Bratislava and around 25 km from the Hungarian border. It is a road and railway hub of southern...

 – Patince
Patince
Patince is a village and municipality in the Komárno District in the Nitra Region of south-west Slovakia.-Geography:The village lies at an altitude of 111 metres and covers an area of 11.306 km².It has a population of about 450 people....

.

It has been formed by the arms of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

 (Little Danube
Little Danube
The Little Danube is a branch of the river Danube in Slovakia.It splits from the main river near Bratislava, and flows more or less parallel to the Danube until it flows into the river Váh in Kolárovo...

 and others) and by the southern Váh
Váh
The Váh is the longest river in entire Slovakia. A left tributary of the Danube river, the Váh is 406 km long, including its Čierny Váh branch...

, Nitra
Nitra
Nitra is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. With a population of about 83,572, it is the fifth largest city in Slovakia. Nitra is also one of the oldest cities in Slovakia and the country's earliest political and cultural center...

 and Žitava
Žitava
Žitava may refer to:*Žitava , a river in Slovakia*a part of the municipality Radvaň nad Dunajom*Zittau, Žitava being the Slavic name of the town in Germany-See also:...

 rivers. It is filled with huge layers of gravel from the Danube and other rivers of the area. These Danubian gravels are covered with loess and other very fertile soils.

The Danube forms here a unique continental delta
River delta
A delta is a landform that is formed at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river. Deltas are formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river...

 system of meanders and dead arms. The area between one of those arms called Little Danube
Little Danube
The Little Danube is a branch of the river Danube in Slovakia.It splits from the main river near Bratislava, and flows more or less parallel to the Danube until it flows into the river Váh in Kolárovo...

 and the Danube is known as the Žitný ostrov
Žitný ostrov
Žitný ostrov, also called Veľký Žitný ostrov to differentiate it from Malý Žitný ostrov , is a river island in southwestern Slovakia, extending from Bratislava to Komárno. It lies between the Danube and its tributary Little Danube and is a major part of the Danubian Flat...

, the biggest river island in Europe. The Žitný ostrov is an area with marsh depressions, natural lakes and artificial lakes. The drainage system of the southern area was (deliberately) significantly changed by the construction of the Gabčíkovo Dam on the Danube. The Žitný ostrov has been a "Protected Water Management Area" since 1978.

The area is rich in forest glades, water and marsh fauna and flora. It has rich subterranean water reservoirs. Those in Žitný ostrov are among the largest in Central Europe. Warm springs can be found in Komárno, Štúrovo
Štúrovo
Štúrovo is a town in Slovakia, situated on the River Danube. Its population in 2005 was 11,172.The town is situated opposite the Hungarian city of Esztergom. The Mária Valéria bridge connects the settlements. The bridge was destroyed in 1944 during World War II, but reconstructed in...

 and Patince.

The area has the warmest and driest climate in Slovakia. This, and the fact that it has fertile soils, make it the ideal place for agriculture. Wheat, sugar beets, sweet corn, vegetables and tobacco are grown here. Fruit and vine growing are also important.

The most important towns of the area are the Slovak capital Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...

 (the Danube Flat begins in below Bratislava Castle
Bratislava Castle
Bratislava Castle is the main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia.The massive rectangular building with four corner towers stands on a quite isolated rocky hill of the Little Carpathians directly above the Danube river in the middle of Bratislava...

 in central Bratislava), Galanta
Galanta
Galanta is a small town in Slovakia. It is situated 50 km due east from the Slovak capital Bratislava.-Geography:Galanta lies in the Danubian Lowland , the warm southern part of Slovakia...

, Sereď
Sered
Sereď is a town in southern Slovak Republic near Trnava, on the right bank of the Váh River on the Danubian Lowland. It has аpproximately 17,000 inhabitants.It has a hotel, cinema, culture house, many restaurants and confectioner's shops.-Geography:...

, Dunajská Streda
Dunajská Streda
Dunajská Streda is a town in southern Slovakia . Dunajská Streda is the most important town of the Žitný ostrov region. It has a Hungarian ethnic majority and its population is 23,562 -Name:...

, Komárno
Komárno
Komárno is a town in Slovakia at the confluence of the Danube and the Váh rivers. Komárno was formed from part of a historical town in Hungary situated on both banks of the Danube. Following World War I, the border of the newly created Czechoslovakia cut the historical, unified town in half,...

, ans Nové Zámky
Nové Zámky
Nové Zámky is a town in southwestern Slovakia.-Geography:The town is located on the Danubian Lowland, on the Nitra River, at an altitude of 119 metres. It is located around 100 km from Bratislava and around 25 km from the Hungarian border. It is a road and railway hub of southern...

.

The area features many small-scale protected areas, such as Ostov Kopáš in Bratislava or the Vlčianske mŕtve rameno, Čičovské mŕtve rameno. Protected marshes are for example the unique Šúr
Sur
Sur was a literary journal published in Buenos Aires. Its main backer was Victoria Ocampo, and it was supported intellectually by the Spanish philosopher José Ortega y Gasset. Many of the earliest editions of Sur carry the colophon of Ortega's Revista de Occidente...

 area in Svätý Jur
Svätý Jur
Svätý Jur is a small town northeast of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. The name means Saint George. Between 1960 and 1990, the Communist government forced the town to use a "non-religious" name Jur pri Bratislave. Svätý Jur has a population of almost 5,000.-Geography:Svätý Jur is situated in...

. The area of Zlatná na Ostrove
Zlatná na Ostrove
Zlatná na Ostrove is a village and municipality in the Komárno District in the Nitra Region of south-west Slovakia.- Geography :The village lies at an altitude of 120 metres and covers an area of 35.407 km².It has a population of about 2555 people....

 provides an extensive habitat for Great Bustard
Great Bustard
The Great Bustard is in the bustard family, the only member of the genus Otis. It breeds in southern and central Europe, where it is the largest species of bird, and across temperate Asia...

s.

Excellent opportunities for summer recreation are provided by the lakes Zlaté piesky
Zlaté Piesky
Zlaté Piesky is a lake and a summer resort in northeastern Bratislava, Slovakia, near the D1 motorway.-Characteristics:...

 in Bratislava and the lakes Slnečné jazerá in Senec, or by thermal swimming pools in Dunajská Streda
Dunajská Streda
Dunajská Streda is a town in southern Slovakia . Dunajská Streda is the most important town of the Žitný ostrov region. It has a Hungarian ethnic majority and its population is 23,562 -Name:...

, Veľký Meder
Velký Meder
Veľký Meder is a town in the Dunajská Streda District, Trnava Region in southwestern Slovakia.-Geography:Veľký Meder lies in the eastern part of Great Rye Island, on the western border of historical Komárom County,...

 and Diakovce
Diakovce
Diakovce is an old village and municipality in Šaľa District, in the Nitra Region of southwest Slovakia.-History:In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1002 meaning that it is one of the oldest recorded villages in Slovakia. In 1001, Stephen I of Hungary deployed Benedictines...

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