Daugava
Daugava is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index, part of the Zapadnaya Dvina system. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- System
- Zapadnaya Dvina
- Coordinates
- 55.81°, 27.92°
About Daugava
The Daugava ( DOW-gə-və), also known as the Western Dvina or the Väina River, is a large river rising in the Valdai Hills of Russia that flows through Belarus and Latvia into the Gulf of Riga of the Baltic Sea. The Daugava rises close to the source of the Volga. It is 1,020 km (630 mi) in length, of which 352 km (219 mi) are in Latvia and 325 km (202 mi) in Russia. It is a westward-flowing river, tracing out a great south-bending curve as it passes through northern Belarus.
Latvia's capital, Riga, bridges the river's estuary four times. Built on both riverbanks, the city centre is 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from the river's mouth and is a significant port.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Daugava (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Daugava in Depth
History
Humans have settled at the mouth of the Daugava and along the shores of the Gulf of Riga for millennia, initially participating in a hunter-gatherer economy and utilizing the waters of the Daugava estuary for fishing and gathering. Beginning around the sixth century CE, Viking explorers crossed the Baltic Sea and entered the Daugava River, navigating upriver into the Baltic interior.
In medieval times, the Daugava was part of the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks, an important route for the transport of furs from the north and of Byzantine silver from the south.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Daugava (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Daugava: Key Facts
| Length | 1,020 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 678 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 87,900 km² |
| Source | Valdai Hills |
| Mouth | Gulf of Riga |
| Drainage system | Daugava basin |
| Tributaries | Aiviekste, Obaĺ, Palata River, Drysa, Rosica, Ogre River, Kasplya, Ula |
Facts from Wikidata Q8197 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Daugava: Quick Answers
- Where is Daugava?
- Daugava is located in Belarus and Latvia and Russia, at 55.8147° N, 27.9175° E.
- Are there dams on the Daugava?
- No dam on the Daugava is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.
- Which river system is the Daugava part of?
- The Daugava is part of the Zapadnaya Dvina system.