MWERU, LAKE

French Lac Moero, lake in central Africa, bordered to the east by Zambia and to the west by Congo (Kinshasa). The name is Bantu for lake. A part of the Congo River system, it lies in the northwest of the Mweru-Luapula-Bangweulu plain, its surface being about 3,010 feet (917 m) above sea level. Its greatest length (south-southwest to north-northeast) is 76 miles (122 km), its average width 31 miles (50 km), and its surface area 1,900 square miles (4,920 square km). The lake's margins are generally flat, except on the rocky western coast. The Luapula River enters Mweru on the south, and the Luvua leaves it on the north, west of the town of Pweto, flowing northwest to join the Lualaba. Kilwa and Sokwe islands are in the southern part of the lake. The extensive Bangweulu Swamps adjoin it to the east and south.