This article lists rivers which are (at least partially) located in Germany. Rivers that flow into the sea are sorted geographically, along the coast. Rivers that flow into other rivers are sorted by the proximity of their points of confluence to the sea (the lower in the list, the more upstream). Some rivers (the Meuse, for example) do not flow through Germany themselves, but they are mentioned for having German tributaries. They appear in italics. For clarity, only rivers that are longer than 50 kilometres (31 mi) (or have longer tributaries) are included. An alphabetical list of all German rivers that have an article in Wikipedia appears at the end of the article.
The rivers of Germany flow into the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea and the North Sea. The most important rivers of Germany include:
The rivers in this section are sorted north-west (Danish border) to east (Polish border) and drain into the Baltic Sea:
These rivers drain into the Black Sea:
The rivers in this section are sorted south-west (Netherlands) to east (Danish border) and drain into the North Sea:
Aabach, Aar, Abens, Acher, Agger, Ahr, Aland, Alf, Aller, Alme, Alsenz, Alster, Altmühl, Alz, Ammer (Neckar), Ammer/Amper, Aue (Elbe), Aue (Suhle), Berkel, Bever, Biber, Biela, Bille, Bist, Black Elster, Blau, Blies, Bode, Böhme, Breg, Breitach, Brend, Brenz, Brigach, Chamb, Chemnitz, Dahme, Danube, Diemel, Dill, Dinkel, Dosse, Dreisam, Düssel, Echaz, Eder, Eider, Elbe, Elde, Else, Elz (Neckar), Elz (Rhine), Elzbach, Ems, Emscher, Ennepe, Enz, Enz (Prüm), Erft
Feller Bach, Fils, Franconian Saale, Franconian Rezat, Franconian Saale, Freiberger Mulde, Friedberger Ach, Fuhse, Fulda, Garte, Gera, Glan, Gose/Abzucht, Gottleuba, Große Laber, Günz, Hamme, Hase, Haune, Havel, Heller, Hönne, Hörsel, Hunte, Ihme, Iller, Ilm (Bavaria), Ilm (Thuringia), Ilmenau, Ilz, Inde, Inn, Innerste, Isar, Isen, Itz, Jade, Jagst, Jeetzel, Kammel, Kander, Kinzig (Main), Kinzig (Rhine), Kocher, Kyll
Lahn, Lauchert, Lauter (Glan), Lauter (Rhine), Lech, Leda, Leibi, Leine, Lenne, Lesum, Lieser, Lippe, Löcknitz, Loisach, Lusatian Neisse, Lutter (Lachte), Lutter (Leine), Lutter (Oder), Main, Mandau, Maurine, Mindel, Möhne, Moselle, Mulde, Münstersche Aa, Murg, Murr, Mže/Mies, Naab, Nahe, Nebel, Neckar, Neetze, Nette (Innerste), Nette (Niers), Nette (Middle Rhine), Nidda, Nied, Niers, Nims, Nister, Nuthe, Oder, Oder (Harz), Ohm, Ohre, Ohře/Eger, Oker, Orla, Örtze, Oste, Oude IJssel, Our
Paar, Pader, Parthe, Peene, Pegnitz, Pfinz, Plane, Pleiße, Prims, Prüm, Queich, Recknitz, Red Main, Rednitz, Regen, Regnitz, Rems, Rench, Rheider Au, Rhin, Rhine, Rhume, Riß, Rot, Red Weißeritz, Red Main, Rott, another Rott, Ruhr, Rur, Ruwer, Ryck, Saalach, Saale, Saar, Salm, Salzach, Sauer, Sauer (Rhine), Scheppau, Schmutter, Schozach, Schwarze Elster, Schunter, Schutter, Swabian Rezat, Schwalm (Eder), Schwalm (Meuse), Schwarza, Schwarzbach (Blies), Schwarze Laber, Schwentine, Seeve, Selbitz, Selz, Sieg, Soeste, Spree, Sprotte, Stepenitz (Elbe), Stepenitz (Trave), Stör, Sulm, Swist
Tanger, Tauber, Tiroler Achen, Tollense, Trave, Treene, Uecker, Ulster, Unstrut, Usa, Vechte, Vils (Danube), Vils (Lech), Vils (Naab), Volme, Wakenitz, Warnow, Weida, Weil, White Elster, Weißeritz, Werra, Werre, Wertach, Wesenitz, Weser, Westfälische Aa, Wetter, White Elster, White Main, Wied, Wiese, Wild Weißeritz, Wipper (Saale), Wipper (Unstrut), Wisper, Wörnitz, Wümme, Wupper, Würm, Wurm, Wutach, Zaber, Zeegenbach, Zschopau, Zusam, Zwickauer Mulde
The Main is the longest tributary of the Rhine. It rises as the White Main in the Fichtel Mountains of northeastern Bavaria and flows west through central Germany for 525 kilometres (326 mi) to meet the Rhine below Rüsselsheim, Hesse. The cities of Mainz and Wiesbaden are close to the confluence.
The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia, then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 kilometres northwest of Hamburg. Its total length is 1,094 km (680 mi).
The Saale, also known as the Saxon Saale and Thuringian Saale, is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saale, a right-bank tributary of the Main, or the Saale in Lower Saxony, a tributary of the Leine.
The Fichtel Mountains, form a small horseshoe-shaped mountain range in northeastern Bavaria, Germany. They extend from the valley of the Red Main River to the Czech border, a few foothills spilling over into the Czech Republic. They continue in a northeasterly direction as the Elster Mountains, and in a southeasterly direction as the Upper Palatine Forest. The Fichtel Mountains contain an important nature park, the Fichtel Mountain Nature Park, with an area of 1,020 square kilometres (390 sq mi).
Weimarer Land is a Landkreis (district) in the east of Thuringia, Germany. Neighboring districts are the district Burgenlandkreis in Saxony-Anhalt, the district Saale-Holzland and the district-free city Jena, the district Saalfeld-Rudolstadt, Ilm-Kreis, and the district-free city Erfurt. The district-free city Weimar is completely enclosed by the district.
The Unstrut is a river in Germany and a left tributary of the Saale.
The main European watershed is the drainage divide ("watershed") which separates the basins of the rivers that empty into the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea from those that feed the Mediterranean Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the Black Sea. It stretches from the tip of the Iberian Peninsula at Gibraltar in the southwest to the endorheic basin of the Caspian Sea in Russia in the northeast.
The Franconian Forest, is a mid-altitude mountain range in Northern Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the district of Upper Franconia (Oberfranken) and forms the geological connection between the Fichtel Mountains and the Thuringian Forest. It is a broad well-wooded plateau, running for about 45 kilometres (28 mi) in a northwesterly direction, descending gently on the north and eastern sides towards the Saale river, but more precipitously to the Bavarian plain in the west, and attaining its highest elevation in the Döbraberg near Schwarzenbach am Wald. Along the centre lies the watershed between the basins of the Main and the Saale, belonging to the systems of the Rhine and Elbe respectively.
Germany is a country in Central and Western Europe that stretches from the Alps, across the North European Plain to the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. It is the second-most populous country in Europe after Russia, and is seventh-largest country by area in the continent. The area of Germany ranked 63rd and covers 357,021 km2 (137,847 sq mi), consisting of 349,223 km2 (134,836 sq mi) of land and 7,798 km2 (3,011 sq mi) of waters, smaller than Japan but larger than Republic of the Congo.
Jossa is a river of Hesse, Germany. It is a tributary of the Sinn, which in turn flows into the Franconian Saale shortly before the latter discharges into the Main at Gemünden am Main.