The Kocába is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

, a left

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the

Vltava The Vltava ( , ; ) is the longest river in the Czech Republic, a left tributary of the Elbe River. It runs southeast along the Bohemian Forest and then north across Bohemia, through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice, and Prague. It is com ...

River. It flows through the

Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( ; ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in the Czech capital Prague, which lies in the centre of the regio ...

. It is long.

Etymology

The initial name of the river was Chocava, however, the origin of the name is unsure. According to one theory, the name of has the root ''chot-'', ''chod-'' (meaning 'to guard', from the word ''chodit'' = 'to walk') and is derived from the guarding of the trade route from Prague to southern Bohemia that led through Chotobuš locality in what is today the town of

Dobříš Dobříš (; ) is a town in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,900 inhabitants. It is known for the Dobříš Castle. Administrative division Dobříš consists of two municipal parts (in brack ...

. The name Kocába gradually evolved from Chocava. The oldest written document of the river is from 1361, when the name was written as ''Koczaw''.

Characteristic

The Kocába originates in the territory of

Dubno Dubno (, ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality located on the Ikva River in Rivne Oblast (oblast, province) of western Ukraine. It serves as the capital city, administrative center of Dubno Raion ...

in the Brdy Highlands at an elevation of , and flows to

Štěchovice Štěchovice is a market town in Prague-West District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,200 inhabitants. Administrative division Štěchovice consists of three municipal parts (in brackets population according ...

, where it enters the Vltava River at an elevation of . It is long. Its

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

has an area of . The longest tributaries of the Kocába are:

Settlements

The river flows through the municipal territories of

, Dubenec, Drásov, Višňová,

Ouběnice Ouběnice is a municipality and village in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The ...

Daleké Dušníky Daleké Dušníky is a municipality and village in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Euro ...

, Rybníky,

Stará Huť Stará Huť is a municipality and village in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,700 inhabitants. Etymology The name literally means 'old smelter.' Geography Stará Huť is located about northe ...

, Mokrovraty,

Nový Knín Nový Knín is a town in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,200 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Administrative division Nový ...

Malá Hraštice Malá Hraštice is a municipality and village in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,200 inhabitants. Administrative division Malá Hraštice consists of two municipal parts (in brackets populati ...

, Velká Lečice, Bojanovice,

Bratřínov Bratřínov is a municipality and village in Prague-West District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. ...

, Slapy and

Bodies of water

There are 270 bodies of water in the basin area. The largest of them is the fishpond Huťský rybník with an area of , built on the stream of Sychrovský potok. Several fishponds are built on the upper course of the Kocába.

History

In the Middle Ages, the banks of the Kocába were popular for

gold panning Gold panning, or simply ''panning'', is a form of placer mining and traditional mining that extracts gold from a placer deposit using a pan. The process is one of the simplest ways to extract gold, and is popular with geology enthusiasts espec ...

. After World War I, the valley of the Kocába became a popular destinations for tramps. In the 1930s, several tramping hamlets were established along the river.

References

External links

River flow at Štěchovice station
– Flood Warning and Forecasting Service of the

Czech Hydrometeorological Institute The Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (CHMI; ) is the central state office of the Czech Republic in the fields of air quality, meteorology, climatology and hydrology. It is an organization established by the Ministry of the Environment of the Cz ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kocaba Rivers of the Central Bohemian Region Rivers of the Czech Republic