The Soča ( in Slovene) or Isonzo ( in Italian; other names fur, Lusinç, german: Sontig, la, Aesontius or ') is a long river that flows through western Slovenia () and northeastern Italy (). An Alpine river in character, its source lies in the

Trenta Valley The Trenta Valley () is a valley in the Julian Alps in the northern part of the traditional Gorizia region ( sl, Goriška) of Slovenia. Geography The source of the Soča River and the settlements of Soča, Lepena, and Trenta are located in the ...

in the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia, at an elevation of . The river runs past the towns of Bovec, Kobarid, Tolmin, Kanal ob Soči, Nova Gorica (where it is crossed by the Solkan Bridge), and Gorizia, entering the Adriatic Sea close to the town of Monfalcone. It has a

nival-pluvial regime The river regime generally describes the character of the typical fluctuations of flow of a river, but can also refer to the mathematical relationship between the river discharge and its width, depth and slope. Thus, "river regime" can describe one ...

in its upper course and

pluvial-nival The river regime generally describes the character of the typical fluctuations of flow of a river, but can also refer to the mathematical relationship between the river discharge and its width, depth and slope. Thus, "river regime" can describe one ...

in its lower course. Prior to the First World War, the river ran parallel to the border between Kingdom of Italy and the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. During World War I, it was the scene of bitter fighting between the two countries, culminating in the Battle of Caporetto in 1917.

Name

The river was recorded in antiquity as ''Aesontius'', ''Sontius'', and ''Isontius''. Later attestations include ''super Sontium'' (in 507–11), ''a flumine Isontio'' (1028), ''in Lisonçum'' (1261), ''an die Ysnicz'' (1401), and ''an der Snicz'' (ca. 1440). The Slovene name ''Soča'' is derived from the form ''*Sǫťa'', which was borrowed from Latin (and Romance) ''Sontius''. In turn, this is probably based on the

substrate Substrate may refer to: Physical layers *Substrate (biology), the natural environment in which an organism lives, or the surface or medium on which an organism grows or is attached ** Substrate (locomotion), the surface over which an organism lo ...

name ''*Aisontia'', presumably derived from the

PIE A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients. Sweet pies may be filled with fruit (as in an apple pie), nuts ( pecan pie), brown sugar ( sugar pie), swe ...

root ''*'' 'swift, rushing', referring to a quickly moving river. Another possible origin is the pre-Romance root ''*'' 'water, river'.

Major changes in the watershed

The present course of the river is the result of several dramatic changes that occurred during the past 2,000 years. According to the Roman historian

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

, the river named Aesontius, which in Roman times flowed past

Aquileia Aquileia / / / / ;Bilingual name of ''Aquileja – Oglej'' in: vec, Aquiłeja / ; Slovenian: ''Oglej''), group=pron is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river N ...

to the Adriatic Sea, was essentially the Natisone and Torre river system. In 585, a landslide cut off the upper part of the Natisone riverbed, causing its avulsion and subsequent

stream capture Stream capture, river capture, river piracy or stream piracy is a geomorphological phenomenon occurring when a stream or river drainage system or watershed is diverted from its own bed, and flows instead down the bed of a neighbouring stream. ...

by the Bontius River. The original subterranean discharge of the Bontius into the Timavo became obstructed, and another avulsion returned the new watercourse into the bed of the lower Natisone. During the next centuries the estuary of this new river—the Soča—moved eastward until it captured the short coastal river Sdobba, through which the Isonzo now discharges into the Adriatic Sea. The former estuary (of the Aesontius, and the early Isonzo) in the newly formed lagoon of Grado became an independent coastal rivulet.

Attractions

Due to its

emerald Emerald is a gemstone and a variety of the mineral beryl (Be3Al2(SiO3)6) colored green by trace amounts of chromium or sometimes vanadium.Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr. and Kammerling, Robert C. (1991) ''Gemology'', John Wiley & Sons, New York, p ...

-green water, the river is marketed as "The Emerald Beauty." It is said to be one of the rare rivers in the world that retain such a colour throughout their length. Giuseppe Ungaretti, one of the greatest Italian poets, describes the Isonzo in the poem "The Rivers." The river inspired the poet Simon Gregorčič to write his best-known poem ''Soči'' (''To the Soča''), one of the masterpieces of Slovene poetry. This region served as a location for the 2008 Disney film ''Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian''. The river is also well known for the marble trout (''Salmo marmoratus''); this species is native to rivers of the northern Adriatic basin, and it lives in the upper course of the river. This species is endangered due to the introduction of other non-indigenous trout species sometime between World War I and World War II.

Significance in World War I

The valley was the stage of major military operations including battles of the Isonzo, the twelve battles of the Isonzo on the Italian Campaign (World War I), Italian front in World War I between May 1915 and November 1917, in which over half a million Austro-Hungarian and Italian soldiers lost their lives.See also John R. Schindler, ''Isonzo: The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War'' (2001). . The Isonzo campaign comprised the following battles: *First Battle of the Isonzo: 23 June – 7 July 1915 *Second Battle of the Isonzo: 18 July – 3 August 1915 *Third Battle of the Isonzo : 18 October – 3 November 1915 *Fourth Battle of the Isonzo: 10 November – 2 December 1915 *Fifth Battle of the Isonzo: 9–17 March 1916 *Sixth Battle of the Isonzo: 6–17 August 1916 *Seventh Battle of the Isonzo: 14–17 September 1916 *Eighth Battle of the Isonzo: 10–12 October 1916 *Ninth Battle of the Isonzo: 1–4 November 1916 *Tenth Battle of the Isonzo: 12 May – 8 June 1917 *Eleventh Battle of the Isonzo: 19 August – 12 September 1917 *Battle of Caporetto, Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo: 24 October – 7 November 1917, also known as the Battle of Caporetto

References

External links

* Condition of Soča a
Log Čezsoški
an

- graphs, in the following order, of water level, flow and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken in Log Čezsoški and Solkan by Slovenian Environment Agency, ARSO)
The Walks of Peace in the Soča Region Foundation
The Foundation preserves, restores and presents the historical and cultural heritage of the First World War in the area of the Isonzo Front for the study, tourist and educational purposes.
Galleries of Soca river in kayak
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soca Soča, Soča basin, Rivers of Italy Rivers of the Province of Gorizia Rivers of the Slovene Littoral Waterways of Italy International rivers of Europe Rivers of the Julian Alps Braided rivers in Europe