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Smědá

Coordinates: 51°3′0″N 14°57′52″E / 51.05000°N 14.96444°E / 51.05000; 14.96444
From Tilcayo Cats, the lean encyclopaedia by Tilcayo Knowledge Systems
Smědá
Location
Countries
Regions/
Voivodeships
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationHejnice, Jizera Mountains
 • coordinates50°50′0″N 15°14′55″E / 50.83333°N 15.24861°E / 50.83333; 15.24861
 • elevation1,000 m (3,300 ft)
Mouth 
 • location
Lusatian Neisse
 • coordinates
51°3′0″N 14°57′52″E / 51.05000°N 14.96444°E / 51.05000; 14.96444
 • elevation
194 m (636 ft)
Length55.3 km (34.4 mi)
Basin size
331 km2 (128 sq mi)
Discharge 
 • average4.21 m3/s (149 cu ft/s) near the Czech-Polish border
Basin features
ProgressionLusatian Neisse→ Oder→ Baltic Sea

The Smědá (Czech pronunciation: [ˈsmɲɛdaː]; Polish: Witka, German: Wittig) is a river in the Czech Republic and Poland, a right tributary of the Lusatian Neisse River. It flows through the Liberec Region in the Czech Republic and then through Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Together with the Bílá Smědá, which is its main source, the Smědá is 55.3 km (34.4 mi) long. Without the Bílá Smědá, it is 51.9 km (32.2 mi) long.

Etymology

The initial name of the river was Wietev, derived from the Slavic word for 'branch' (in modern Czech větev). The oldest mention of Wietev is from 1539. The German name Wittig was derived from this name.[1] In 1951, the German name was replaced by Witka in Poland.[2] The modern Czech name Smědá ('dark' in old Czech) is derived from the dark water which flows out of the peat bogs.[3]

Characteristic

The Smědá originates as Bílá Smědá in peat pogs in the territory of Hejnice in the Jizera Mountains at an elevation of exactly 1,000 m (3,300 ft). After it merges with the stream Černá Smědá (and from a broader point of view with the Hnědá Smědá, which joins the Černá Smědá) and further continues as Smědá. It flows to Radomierzyce, where it enters the Lusatian Neisse River at an elevation of 194 m (636 ft). Its total length is 55.3 km (34.4 mi). Without the Bílá Smědá, the Smědá is 51.9 km (32.2 mi) long,[4] of which 47.8 km (29.7 mi) (including the Czech–Polish border) is in the Czech Republic.[5] About 2.7 km (1.7 mi) forms the Czech–Polish state border. The drainage basin has an area of 331 km2 (128 sq mi),[4] of which 251.3 km2 (97.0 sq mi)[5] is in the Czech Republic.

The sources and longest tributaries of the Smědá are:[6]

Tributary Length (km) Side
Řasnice 18.3 right
Lomnice 17.0 right
Bulovský potok 15.4 right
Sloupský potok 9.8 left
Bílá Smědá 3.4 –
Černá Smědá 2.5 right

Course

The river flows through the territories of Hejnice, Bílý Potok, Raspenava, Frýdlant, Kunratice, Višňová and Černousy in the Czech Republic and Zawidów, Gmina Sulików and Gmina Zgorzelec in Poland.

Bodies of water

In Poland, the Niedów Reservoir (also called Witka Reservoir) is constructed on the Smědá. It was built in 1958–1962 and is used as a recreational area. In 2010, the dam burst due to flash floods. The new dam was built in 2016.[7]

Nature

The final section of the river within the limits of the Czech Republic is protected as the Meandry Smědé ('Smědá meanders') Nature Reserve. It has an area of 136.6 ha (338 acres). The object of protection is the natural character of the river bed with meanders, pools and wet meadows, with a large number of protected plant and animal species.[8] The wider area with a stretch of the river with a length of about 23 km (14 mi) is also protected as a Special Area of Conservation. The area is home to a population of the green snaketail, which is a protected species in the Czech Republic.[9]

The fauna living in the river includes river trout, brook trout,[4] European bullhead, burbot, Eurasian minnow and brook lamprey.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Smědava". Okolí Liberce (in čeština). Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  2. ↑ "Zarządzenie nr 115 Prezesa Rady Ministrów z dnia 1 czerwca 1951 r. w sprawie przywrócenia i ustalenia urzędowych nazw rzecznych śląskiej części dorzecza Odry i Łaby". Internetowy System Aktów Prawnych (in polski). Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  3. ↑ "Povodňový plán obce Černousy: Hydrologické údaje". Elektronický digitální povodňový portál (in čeština). Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Škeříková, Martina (2015-09-10). "Obnovený úsek řeky Smědé se otvírá". frydlantsko.eu (in čeština). Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Základní charakteristiky toku Smědá a jeho povodí" (in čeština). T. G. Masaryk Water Research Institute. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
  6. ↑ "Vodní toky". Evidence hlásných profilů (in čeština). Czech Hydrometeorological Institute. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  7. ↑ Vančatová, Jana (2016-08-07). "I Polsko má svou protrženou přehradu - jezero Niedów na řece Witce, kilometr od české hranice". Novinky.cz (in čeština). Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  8. ↑ "Meandry Smědé" (in čeština). Nature Conservation Agency of the Czech Republic. Retrieved 2026-04-22.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Smědá" (in čeština). Nature Conservation Agency of the Czech Republic. Retrieved 2026-04-22.
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