The Borovitsa ( bg, Боровица) is a 42 km long river in southern
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, a left tributary of the
Arda
Arda or ARDA may refer to:
Places
*Arda (Maritsa), a river in Bulgaria and Greece
* Arda (Italy), a river in Italy
*Arda (Douro), a river in Portugal
* Arda, Bulgaria, a village in southern Bulgaria
* Arda, County Fermanagh, a townland in County ...
of the
Maritsa drainage.
Along its low course and its tributary the Ayladere passes the boundary between the western and the eastern
Rhodope Mountains
The Rhodopes (; bg, Родопи, ; el, Ροδόπη, ''Rodopi''; tr, Rodoplar) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in ...
.
The river takes its source under the name Hambardere at an altitude of 1,622 m on the northern foothills of the summit of Elvarnika (1,715 m) in the Pereliksko–Prespanski Ridge of the western Rhodope Mountains. It initially flows in northeastern direction, gradually turning to the southeast and forming a large arc bulging to the north. Its valley is deep and sparsely forested. The river flows into the northern arm of the
Kardzhali Reservoir on the Arda at an altitude of 332 m.
It drains the northeastern slopes of the Pereliksko–Prespanski Ridge and the westernmost parts of the Gorata Ridge.
Its drainage basin covers a territory of 301 km
2, or 5.19% of the Arda's total.
The river has predominantly rain–snow feed. The average annual flow at its mouth is 5 m
3/s.
The Borovitsa flows in
Smolyan
Smolyan ( bg, Смолян) List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, is a town and ski resort in the south of Bulgaria near the border with Greece. It is the administrative and industrial centre of the homonymous Smolyan Province. The town is built ...
,
Plovdiv
Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...
and
Kardzhali Province
Kardzhali Province ( bg, Област Кърджали, Oblast Kărdžali, tr, Kırcaali ili) is a province of southern Bulgaria, neighbouring Greece with the Greek regional units of Xanthi, Rhodope, and Evros to the south and east. It is 320 ...
s. There are three villages along its course, all of them in Kardzhali Province —
Bezvodno and
Voynovo in
Chernoochene Municipality
Chernoochene Municipality is a municipality in Kardzhali Province, Bulgaria. The administrative centre is the village of Chernoochene.
Demographics
According to the 2011 census, the municipality of Chernoochene has the highest relative share of e ...
, and
Nenkovo in
Kardzhali Municipality
Kardzhali Municipality is a municipality in Kardzhali Province, Bulgaria. Its administrative centre is Kardzhali.
Demography Ethnic groups
According to the 2011 census, the municipality of Kardzhali was mostly inhabited by ethnic Turks (55.5%) an ...
. Along its course is situated the Borovitsa Reservoir which provides potable water for the town of
Kardzhali
Kardzhali ( bg, Кърджали , ''Kărdžali''; tr, Kırcaali; gr, Κάρτζαλι, ''Kártzali''), sometimes spelt Kardžali or Kurdzhali, is a town in the Eastern Rhodopes in Bulgaria, centre of Kardzhali Municipality and Kardzhali Provi ...
.
Near its confluence with the Arda at the modern Kardzhali Reservoir are located the ruins of the medieval
Patmos Fortress
Patmos () is a medieval fortress in the Rhodope Mountains of southern Bulgaria rising over a promontory near the confluence of the rivers Arda and Borovitsa. A few kilometers to the west upstream the valley of the Arda are located the ruins of t ...
.
Citations
References
* {{cite book , ref={{harvid, Geographic Dictionary of Bulgaria, 1980
, title = Географски речник на България
, trans-title = Geographic Dictionary of Bulgaria
, last1 = Мичев (Michev)
, first1 = Николай (Nikolay)
, last2 = Михайлов (Mihaylov)
, first2 = Цветко (Tsvetko)
, last3 = Вапцаров (Vaptsarov)
, first3 = Иван (Ivan)
, last4 = Кираджиев (Kiradzhiev)
, first4 = Светлин (Svetlin)
, chapter =
, year = 1980
, language = Bulgarian
, publisher = Наука и култура (Nauka i kultura)
, location = София (
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
)
, isbn =
Rivers of Bulgaria
Landforms of Kardzhali Province
Landforms of Plovdiv Province
Landforms of Smolyan Province