ODER RIVER

The Elbe, Oder, and Vistula river basins and their drainage network. Polish and Czech Odra, river of east-central Europe. It is one of the most significant rivers in the catchment basin of the Baltic Sea, second only to the Vistula in discharge and length. For the first 70 miles (112 kilometres) from its source, it passes through the Czech Republic. For a distance of 116 miles in its middle reach, it constitutes the boundary between Poland and Germany before reaching the Baltic Sea via a lagoon north of the Polish city of Szczecin. The river is an important waterway, navigable throughout most of its length. It forms a link, by way of the Gliwice Canal, between the great industrialized areas of Silesia (Slask), in southwestern Poland, and the trade routes of the Baltic Sea and beyond. The Oder is connected with the Vistula, Poland's largest river, by means of a water route utilizing the Warta and Notec rivers, together with the Bydgoszcz Canal, and is tied in with the waterway system of western Europe by way of the OderSpree and OderHavel canals in eastern Germany. The total length of the Oder River is 531 miles (854 kilometres), 461 miles of which lie in Poland. The total watershed area has been calculated at 46,000 square miles (119,000 square kilometres), of which about 90 percent is in Polish territory. The mean elevation of the Oder basin is 535 feet (163 metres) above sea level. From the river's source and over the greater part of its course, the Oder flows in a generally southeastnorthwest direction; only from the junction with the Neisse (Polish: Nysa Luzycka) River does the northward trend toward the Baltic commence. The principal left-bank tributaries are the Opava of the Czech Republic and the Osobloga, Nysa Klodzka, Olawa, Sleza, Bystrzyca, Kaczawa, Bbr, and Neisse of Poland; from the east the main tributaries are the Ole of the Czech Republic and the Klodnica, Mala Panew, Strobrawa, Widawa, Barycz, Obrzyca, Warta, Mysla, and Ina of Poland. From the junction with the Opava, the Oder is navigable for a distance of some 475 miles for 220 to 230 days of the year. Towns of particular importance along the Oder are Ostrava in the Czech Republic, Frankfurt in Germany, and Racibrz, Opole, Brzeg, Wroclaw, Nowa Sl, and Szczecin in Poland. Polish and Czech Odra major river of northern Europe, flowing some 531 miles (854 km) from its source in the Oder Mountains of the Hrub Jesenk Range in the Czech Republic northwestward to the Baltic Sea. Known in ancient times as the Viadua, the river has played an important role in many ages and cultures. From the origin of the Polish state in the 9th and 10th centuries, the Oder formed its boundary with the Germanic states to the west. From the German expansion of the 13th century until the Potsdam settlement of August 1945, the Oder was essentially a German river. Following Germany's defeat in World War II, however, it was formally recognized as the Polish-German border by East Germany in 1950 and by West Germany in 1970 (see also Oder-Neisse Line). As the second largest river emptying into the Baltic (after the Vistula), the Oder is of considerable economic importance as a transportation route. It is navigable for 475 miles (765 km) from its mouth, and it is connected by canal with the Vistula and with the western European waterway system. It serves chiefly the major Polish industrial region of Silesia (Slask). In its lower reaches the Oder is heavily channelized and served by systems of locks. Reservoirs in higher regions help maintain the river's flow in dry seasons. Additional reading Materials in English on the Oder River are scarce. The only substantial works providing comprehensive coverage of the Oder, along with the Vistula, are in Polish and include Juliusz Stach (ed.), Atlas Hydrologiczny Polski, 2 vol. (1987), containing maps and tables; and Zdzislaw Mikulski, Zarys hydrografii Polski (1965), which, though dated, is still considered the fundamental professional study. Andrzej Grodek et al. (eds.), Monografia Odry (1948), is the standard source for the Oder itself. Useful information is also found in Don E. Bierman, The Oder River: Transport and Economic Development (1973), focusing on shipping and navigation. Jerzy Pruchnicki