The
Oder or in
Czech and
Polish Odra is a
river in
Central Europe. It begins in the
Czech Republic and flows through western
Poland, later forming 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 (
Dziwna,
Świna and
Peene) that empty into the
Baltic Sea.
Names
The Oder is known by several names in different languages: (
English and ;
Czech,
Slovak and ; ;
Classical Latin:
Viadrus,
Viadua;
Medieval Latin:
Od(d)era).
Geography
The Oder is 854 km long: 112 in the Czech Republic, 742 in Poland (including 187 on the border between Germany and Poland) and is the second longest river in Poland (after the
Vistula). It drains 118,861 km² of watershed, 106,056 of which are in Poland (89%), 7,217 in the Czech Republic (6%), and 5,587 in Germany (5%). Channels connect it to the
Havel,
Spree,
Vistula system and
Kłodnica. 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 near
Police. The Szczecin Lagoon is bordered on the north by islands of
Usedom (west) and
Wolin (east). Between these two islands, there is only a narrow channel (
Świna) going to the
Bay of Pomerania, which forms a part of the Baltic Sea.
The largest city on the Oder River is
Wrocław.
Navigation
The Oder is navigable over a large part of its total length, as far upstream as to the town of
Koźle, where the river connects to the Gliwicki Canal. The upstream part of the river is canalized and permits larger barges (up to CEMT Class IV) to navigate between the industrial sites around the
Wrocław area.
Further downstream the river is free flowing, passing the towns of
Eisenhüttenstadt (where a canal connects the river to the
Spree in
Berlin) and
Frankfurt (Oder). Downstream of Frankfurt the
Warta River forms a navigable connection with
Poznań 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
Świnoujście. (Source: )
History
The river in
Germania Magna 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 (see
via). In German it was and is called the
Oder, written in older records as
Odera or
Oddera in
Medieval Latin documents and was mentioned in the
Dagome iudex, which described territory of Duke
Mieszko I ca. 990 and
Oda von Haldensleben.
The Oder was an important trade route and towns in Germania were documented along with many tribes living between the rivers
Albis, Viadrus and
Vistula. Centuries later the
Bavarian Geographer (ca. 845) 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 (1086) mentions Zlasane, Trebovyane, Poborane, and Dedositze in Silesia.
In the 13th century, the first
dams were built to protect agricultural lands.
The earliest important undertaking with a view of improving the waterway was due to the initiative of
Frederick the Great, who recommended the diversion of the river into a new and straight channel in the swampy tract of land known as
Oderbruch near
Küstrin. The work was carried out in the years 1746-1753, a large tract of marshland being brought under cultivation, a considerable detour cut off and the main stream successfully confined to a canal.
In the late
1800s three additional alterations were made to the waterway.
- The canalization of the main stream at Breslau, and from the confluence of the Glatzer Neisse to the mouth of the Klodnitz Canal, a distance of over . These engineering works were completed in 1896.
- The deepening and regulation of the mouth and lower course of the stream.
By the
Treaty of Versailles the navigation on the Oder became subject to International Commission of the Oder. Following the articles 363 and 364 of the Treaty
Czechoslovakia was entitled to lease in Stettin (now Szczecin) its own section in the harbour, then called
Tschechoslowakische Zone im Hafen Stettin. The contract of lease between Czechoslovakia and
Germany, and supervised by the
United Kingdom, was signed on February 16, 1929 and would end in 2028, however, after 1945 Czechoslovakia did not regain this legal position, de facto abolished in 1938/1939.
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
thumb|180px|Oder in [[Police, Poland|Police]]
Main section:
Dziwna branch (between
Wolin Island and mainland Poland):
Świna branch (between Wolin and the
Usedom islands):
Szczecin Lagoon:
Peene branch (between Usedom Island and the German mainland):
Eastern tributaries
Western tributaries
Opava - Psina - Cisek - Olszówka - Stradunia - Osobłoga - Prószkowski Potok -
Nysa Kłodzka - Oława -
Ślęza - Bystrzyca - Średzka Woda - Cicha Woda - Kaczawa - Ślepca -
Zimnica - Dębniak - Biała Woda - Czarna Struga - Śląska Ochla - Zimny Potok -
Bóbr - Olcha - Racza -
Lusatian Neisse -
Gunica 
