Odra (Kupa) Explained

Odra
Mouth Location:Kupa
Mouth Coordinates:45.4943°N 16.3546°W
Subdivision Type1:Country
Subdivision Name1:Croatia
Length:83km (52miles)
Basin Size:604km2

Odra (pronounced as /odra/) is a river in central Croatia. It is 83km (52miles) long and its basin covers an area of 604km2. Its source is in the Žumberak mountain, southwest of Zagreb. It flows eastwards, passes south of Velika Gorica, then turns south-east, more or less parallel to the river Sava. It flows into the river Kupa near Odra Sisačka, just northeast of Sisak, also just before the Kupa joins the river Sava.

The upper flow of Odra has been significantly altered by humans, by the digging of the 32km (20miles) long canal Sava-Odra(-Sava) south of Zagreb, as a measure against flooding (designed taking into account the maximum flows of 1964, 1973 and 1974, and first put to use in 1979).[1]

There is no certain etymology for the river's name, it could be Slavic or pre-Slavic, and 20th-century linguists did not have a consensus about it.[2]

Notes and References

  1. Kanal Sava-Odra-Sava kao objekt obrane Zagreba od poplava . hr . Zagreb flood defences by the Sava - Odra - Sava canal . Stjepan Šterc . Geografski glasnik . 22 June 1979 . 41.-42. . Hrvatsko geografsko društvo - Croatian Geography Society . Zagreb . 41-42, 1979-80 . 97–115 . 2010-10-17. (includes English language summary)
  2. Predslavenski hidronimi na području Republike Hrvatske koji nisu posvjedočeni u antičkim vrelima . . Folia Onomastica Croatica . 24 . 2015 . Pre-Slavic river-names in Croatia which have not been attested in ancient sources . Dubravka . Ivšić . 61–63 .