| Tovdalselva Topdalselva Tovdalsåna / Tovdalsåni | |
| Pushpin Map: | Agder#Norway |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of the river |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | Norway |
| Subdivision Type2: | Counties |
| Subdivision Name2: | Agder |
| Subdivision Type3: | Municipalities |
| Subdivision Name3: | Bygland, Åmli, Froland, Birkenes, Iveland, Kristiansand |
| Source1 Location: | Straumsfjorden |
| Source1 Coordinates: | 59.1°N 7.7°W |
| Mouth Location: | Topdalsfjorden |
| River System: | Tovdalsvassdraget |
| Basin Size: | 1800km2 |
| Length: | 143km (89miles) |
| Discharge1 Location: | Topdalsfjorden |
| Discharge1 Avg: | 65m3/s |
| Waterbodies: | Straumsfjorden, Topsæ, Herefossfjorden |
Tovdalselva (also known as the Tofdalselva, Tovdalsåna, Tovdalsåni, literally: the Tov valley river) is long and is one of the longest rivers in Southern Norway. The river flows through Agder county from the mountains on the northeast side of the Setesdal valley in Valle municipality southwards, until it reaches the sea at the Tofdalsfjorden between Hamresanden and Kjevik in Kristiansand. The upper reaches of the river include many lakes such as the Herefossfjorden and the Straumsfjorden (the largest lake on the river). It drains about in territory and the highest point in the watershed is above sea level. The drainage basin includes parts or all of the following municipalities: Fyresdal, Valle, Bygland, Evje og Hornnes, Åmli, Froland, Grimstad, Birkenes, Iveland, Lillesand, and Kristiansand.[1]
Tovdalselva was long considered one of the greatest salmon fishing rivers in the land. From 1880 to 1883, it was Norway's third most productive salmon river, calculated both by weight and by value of the salmon caught. This had decreased seriously by the 1900s. By 1970, the salmon fishing in the Tovdalselva was almost completely lost.[2]