Drin
Drin is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. 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
- Coordinates
- 41.76°, 20.34°
About Drin
The Drin (; Albanian: Drin [dɾin] or Drini [ˈdɾini]; Macedonian: Дрим, romanized: Drim [drim]) is a river in Southeastern Europe with two major tributaries – the White Drin and the Black Drin and two distributaries – one discharging into the Adriatic Sea, in the Gulf of Drin and the other into the Buna River. Its catchment area extends across Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Greece, Montenegro and North Macedonia and is home to more than 1.6 million people. The river and its tributaries form the Gulf of Drin, an ocean basin that encompasses the northern Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast.
At 285 kilometres (177 miles) long, the Drin is the longest river of Albania and its tributaries cross through both Kosovo and North Macedonia. Its northern tributary, the White Drin starts from the foothills of Žljeb, at White Drin Waterfall in west Kosovo, and flows generally south, whereas its southern tributary, the Black Drin originates from Ohrid lake in the town of Struga, North Macedonia and flows north.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Drin (river) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Drin in Depth
Course
After the confluence of its two tributaries, near the town of Kukës in the northeast Albania, Drin flows west, passing through the Albanian Alps and Fierzë then upon reaching the Dukagjini highlands, flowing then to the south through Apripë e Gurit, Toplanë, Dushman, Koman, Vjerdhë Mazrrek, Rragam, and Pale Lalej. At Vau i Dejës, it enters the low Shkodër Field and splits into two distributaries. One empties into the Gulf of Drin into the Adriatic Sea southwest of Lezhë, forming the Mouth of Drin. The other empties into the Bojana River near the Rozafa Castle.
The Black Drin flows out from the Lake Ohrid near Struga through western North Macedonia and then eastern Albania.
Economy
Drin river contains the largest hydroelectric power station group in the Balkans regarding the installed capacity and reservoir capacity. The Drin is extremely important for the Albanian economy, especially for its electrical production. The three largest hydropower facilities produce 70.6% of Albania's electricity (approx. 1400MW of total installed capacity). North Macedonia has built two hydropower plants – Globocica (42 MW) and Spilje Hydro Power Plant (84 MW) on the Black Drin.
The artificial Lake Fierza created by the dam at Fierzë is the largest artificial lake in Albania with its surface of 73 km2. The second largest artificial lake is also built on this river. Vau i Dejës lake has an area of 25 km2. Construction of the Fierza power station caused some controversy in the 1980s.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Drin (river) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Drin: Key Facts
| Length | 280 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 352 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 12,600 km² |
| Mouth | Adriatic Sea |
| Tributaries | Shala, Kir, Valbona, Lumë, Black Drin, White Drin |
Facts from Wikidata Q213975 (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
Drin: Quick Answers
- Where is Drin?
- Drin is located in Albania and North Macedonia, at 41.7635° N, 20.3390° E.
- Are there dams on the Drin?
- No dam on the Drin is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.