The Hron ( sk, Hron; german: Gran; hu, Garam; la, Granus) is a long left tributary of the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...

Plán manažmentu povodňového rizikavčiastkovom povodí Hrona
p. 38 and the second-longest river in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

. It flows from its source in the Low Tatra Mountains (below

Kráľova hoľa Kráľova hoľa (; german: link=no, Königsberg; hu, Király-hegy, literally "King's Bald Mountain") is the highest mountain (1,946 m) of the eastern part of the Low Tatras in central Slovakia. Four rivers rise at its foot: Čierny Váh, Hnile ...

) through central and southern Slovakia, emptying into the Danube near

Štúrovo Štúrovo (before 1948: ''Parkan''; hu, Párkány, german: Gockern, tr, Ciğerdelen) is a town in Slovakia, situated on the River Danube. Its population in 2018 was 10,279. The town is situated opposite the Hungarian city of Esztergom. The Má ...

and

Esztergom Esztergom ( ; german: Gran; la, Solva or ; sk, Ostrihom, known by alternative names) is a city with county rights in northern Hungary, northwest of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom County, on the right bank of the river Dan ...

. Major cities and towns on the Hron are

Brezno Brezno (; 1927–1948 ''Brezno nad Hronom'', german: Bries or ''Briesen'', hu, Breznóbánya) is a town in central Slovakia with a population of around 21,000. Geography Brezno is located within the Horehronské podolie basin. Brezno lies betw ...

, Banská Bystrica,

Sliač Sliač ( hu, Szliács) is a small spa town located in central Slovakia, on the Hron river, between Banská Bystrica and Zvolen. The town is known for its healing hot springs and for an airport which has been used for military as well as civil pu ...

Zvolen Zvolen (; hu, Zólyom; german: Altsohl) is a town in central Slovakia, situated on the confluence of Hron and Slatina rivers, close to Banská Bystrica. It is surrounded by Poľana mountain from the East, by Kremnické vrchy from the West ...

Žiar nad Hronom Žiar nad Hronom (slang: Žiar, german: link=no, Heiligenkreuz, hu, Garamszentkereszt; until 1920 ''Svätý Kríž'' and until 1955 ''Svätý Kríž nad Hronom'') is a city in Banská Bystrica Region, Slovakia. Name development The name of the ...

Žarnovica Žarnovica (german: Scharnowitz; hu, Zsarnóca) is a town and municipality in the Žarnovica District, Banská Bystrica Region in Slovakia. The town is situated in the Hron river valley. It has a population of around 6,000 people. History The fi ...

, Nová Baňa, Tlmače,

Levice Levice (; hu, Léva, Hungarian pronunciation: ; german: Lewenz, literally lionesses) is a town in western Slovakia. The town lies on the left bank of the lower Hron river. The Old Slavic name of the town was ''Leva'', which means "the Left On ...

Želiezovce Želiezovce ( hu, Zselíz, (formerly) Zseliz (till 1895), Zeliz, Zeléz, german: Zelis (rare)) is a town in Slovakia in the Nitra Region in the Levice District, near the Hron river. Districts * Jarok ( hu, Nyitra-Ivánka) * Karolína * Mi ...

, and Štúrovo. The river's basin covers , which is approximately 11 percent of Slovakia's territory. Hron is a popular destination of

water tourism Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a s ...

Etymology

The name is probably of Germanic origin; ''*Granahua'': ''gran'' – spruce, ''ahua'' – water.

History

The name of the river was mentioned for the first time in 170, when Roman Emperor

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good ...

wrote his ''

Meditations ''Meditations'' () is a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor from AD 161 to 180, recording his private notes to himself and ideas on Stoic philosophy. Marcus Aurelius wrote the 12 books of the ''Meditations'' in Koine ...

'' at the Hron ( la, Granus) river. The first recorded medieval name was Gron (1075). From the 17th century until the 1930s, the river was used for wood transport.

References

Rivers of Slovakia Tributaries of the Danube {{Slovakia-river-stub