The Wakenitz is a river in southeastern Schleswig-Holstein whose source is the Ratzeburger See in Ratzeburg. Its name is of Polabian origin and means "perch river".
The Wakenitz is about 14.5 kilometers long and drains into the Trave in Lübeck. The majority of its eastern bank forms the border between Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. After the end of World War II this river formed part of the Iron Curtain between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Democratic Republic of Germany. The Wakenitz drains an area of about 445 km².