Danube

The Danube (Latin name Hister) is the second-longest river in Europe (the Volga is the longest). It is the longest river of the European Union.

Danube
German: Donau, Slovak: Dunaj, Hungarian: Duna, Croatian: Dunav, Serbian: Дунав, Romanian: Dunăre, Ukrainian: Dunay, Bulgarian: Дунав
River
The Danube in Budapest, Hungary
Countries	Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Ukraine
Source	Breg
- location	Martinskapelle, Black Forest, Germany
- elevation	925 m (3,035 ft)
- length	43 km (27 mi)
- coordinates	48°06′25″N 08°16′57″E
Secondary source	Brigach
- location	St. Georgen, Black Forest, Germany
- elevation	1,078 m (3,537 ft)
- length	49 km (30 mi)
Source confluence
- location	Donaueschingen
Mouth	Danube Delta
- coordinates	45°13′3″N 29°45′41″E
Length	2,860 km (1,777 mi)
Basin	157,183 km² (60,689 sq mi)
Map of the Danube (name places in German)

The river is 2,860 km (1,777 mi) long. Brigach and Breg join together in Donaueschingen (near the Black Forest) to "make" the Danube. The Danube flows through or makes part of the border of 10 countries: Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine. The river ends in the Black Sea through the Danube Delta.

Bigger cities include Ulm, Regensburg in Germany; Linz, Vienna in Austria; Bratislava in Slovakia, Budapest in Hungary; Vukovar in Croatia; Novi Sad and Belgrade in Serbia.

The Danube is named in many other languages: Esperanto Danubo, Bulgarian Дунав (Dunav), German and Plattdüütsch Donau, Greek Dounavis, Ancient Greek: Ister, Hungarian Duna, Turkish Tuna, Latin Danuvius or Danubius, Romanian Dunăre, Croatian Dunav, Serbian Дунав, Slovak Dunaj, Ukrainian Dunay.

The Danube is an important waterway. Ocean ships can go up to Brăila in Romania. River boats can go Kehlheim in Bavaria. Smaller ships can go up to Ulm.

There are three artificial waterways built on the Danube:

• the Danube-Tisa-Danube Canal (DTD) in the Banat and Bačka regions (Vojvodina, in the northern province of Serbia)
• the 64 km Danube-Black Sea Canal, between Cernavodă and Constanţa (Romania) finished in 1984, shortens the distance to the Black Sea by 400 km
• the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal (about 171 km), finished in 1992, linking the North Sea to the Black Sea.

Images

• 

  The place where two small rivers Breg and Brigach join together to form the Danube in Donaueschingen, Germany

• 

  The Danube in Visegrád, Hungary

• 

  The Iron Gate, a deep valley made by the Danube between Serbia and Romania

• 

  Danube - Black Sea coast channel

Other websites

• Danube in easy French