Major Rivers of the World – Part 3
Europe
- Europe, though physically part of the Eurasian Landmass, has been considered as a separate continent due to its large size and distinct culture.
- Europe is commonly considered to be separated from Asia by the watershed of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Greater Caucasus, the Black Sea and the waterways of the Turkish Straits.
- Europe is also home to most of the economically developed nations in the world.
- Hence let us take a look at the major rivers of Europe that made this development possible.
Danube:
- The Danube is a river that connects 10 European countries (Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine).
- It originates in the Black Forest Mountains as two streams – the Brigach and the Breg.
- Danube is the second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia and flows through much of Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest into the Black Sea.
Dnieper:
- The Dnieper is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe.
- It originates in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea.
- It is the longest river of Ukraine and Belarus and the fourth-longest river in Europe.
- The Dnieper is an important navigable waterway for the economy of Ukraine and is connected by the Dnieper–Bug Canal to other waterways in Europe.
Don:
- The Don is the fifth-longest river in Europe and it originates in the small reservoir of Shat, located in the Central Russian Upland near the city of Novomoskovsk.
- Historically it played an important role for traders from the Byzantine Empire since it flows into the Sea of Azov.
Elbe:
- The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe.
- It originates in the Karkonosze mountains in northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia then Germany and flowing into the North Sea.
Moskva:
- The Moskva is a river running through western Russia.
- It rises about 140 km west of Moscow and passes through central Moscow before flowing into the Oka River.
- The Brahmos Missile Project is named after the Brahmaputra and Moskva Rivers.
Rhine:
- The Rhine holds a significant place in the economy of Europe.
- The river originates in Southern Alps and forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein, Swiss-Austrian, Swiss-German borders.
- It also forms much of the Franco-German border, after which it flows in a mostly northerly direction through the German Rhineland.
- Within Germany the Rhine turns into a predominantly westerly direction and flows into the Netherlands where it eventually empties into the North Sea.
Thames:
- Thames River is a river that flows through southern England including London.
- It is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom.
- The river rises at Thames Head in Gloucestershire, and flows into the North Sea near Tilbury, Essex and Gravesend, Kent, via the Thames Estuary.
Tiber:
- The Tiber is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy.
- It originates in the Apennine Mountains and flows through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the River Aniene, to the Tyrrhenian Sea.
- Tiber from the ancient times has been famous across the world as the river of Rome.
Ural:
- The Ural is a river flowing through Russia and Kazakhstan forming the continental border between Europe and Asia.
- It originates in the southern Ural Mountains and discharges into the Caspian Sea.
- It is the third-longest river in Europe after the Volga and the Danube, and the 18th-longest river in Asia.
Volga:
- The Volga is the longest river and largest river in terms of average discharge in Europe.
- It is widely regarded as the national river of Russia and it flows entirely within Russia before discharging into the Caspian Sea.
- Four of the ten largest cities of Russia, including the nation’s capital, Moscow, are located in the Volga’s drainage basin.
