The Uzh ( uk, Уж; translit. ''Uzh''; sk, Uh; hu, Ung, pl, Uż) is a river in
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
and
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 ...
. Its name comes from the ancient west Slavic dialect word ''už'', meaning "Snake", (lat. "Serpentes").
The Uzh is a tributary of the
Laborets River, a river that flows in the Tysa Lowland in
Zakarpattia Oblast
The Zakarpattia Oblast ( uk, Закарпатська область, Zakarpatska oblast) is an administrative oblast located in western Ukraine, mostly coterminous with the historical region of Carpathian Ruthenia. Its administrative centre is ...
of western Ukraine. The river feeds numerous industries and is a source of drinking water and irrigation. It also has a
hydropower
Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, converting the Pot ...
station on it. Several important cities lie along its course, including
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod ( uk, У́жгород, , ; ) is a city and municipality on the river Uzh in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. The city is approximately equidistant from the Baltic, the Adriatic and the B ...
.
It is long, of which are in Slovakia. It flows into the
Laborec
The Laborec ( ukr, Лаборець; hu, Laborc) is a river in eastern Slovakia that flows through the districts of Medzilaborce, Humenné, and Michalovce in the Košice Region, and the Prešov Region. The river drains the Laborec Highlands. ...
river near the city of
Drahňov
Drahňov ( hu, Deregnyő) is a village and municipality in Michalovce District in the Kosice Region of eastern Slovakia.
History
In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1315.
Geography
The village lies at an altitude of 110 m ...
in the
Michalovce District
Michalovce District (''okres Michalovce'') is a district in
the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Euro ...
(
okres).
The Ukrainian city of Uzhhorod and the semi-ruined
Nevitske Castle are situated by the Uzh. The river forms part of the Slovakia–Ukraine border for about near the village of
Pinkovce
Pinkovce ( hu, Ungpinkóc) is a small village and municipality in the Sobrance District in the Košice Region of east Slovakia.
History
In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1343.
Geography
The village lies at an altitude of 1 ...
.
Regions
The Uzh is located in the Zakarpattia Oblast in Ukraine and in the districts of
Michalovce
Michalovce (; hu, Nagymihály, german: Großmichel, Romani language, Romani: ''Mihalya'', Yiddish language, Yiddish: ''Mikhaylovets'' or ''Mykhaylovyts''; uk, Михайлівці) is a town on the Laborec river in eastern Slovakia. Originally ...
and
Sobrance
Sobrance (german: Sobranz, hu, Szobránc) is a town in Košice Region, Slovakia, around from Uzhhorod, Ukraine, and east of Michalovce. Located in the Eastern Slovak Lowland not far from the Vihorlat Mountains, it is the easternmost town in Slo ...
in eastern Slovakia.
Geography
The largest tributaries are,
Right: ,
Strychavka,
Ulychka,
Ubľa,
Kamyanitsa,
Dvernitsky,
Domaarach,
Volshava,
Syry Potyk,
Hachnyk.
Left: Unnamed, , ,
Tur'ya, .
The meander is winding, moderately branched. There are low waterfalls and many islands.
Etymology
Etymologists disagree about the origin of the name of the river. Some would derive it from the Slavic name of the
grass snake
The grass snake (''Natrix natrix''), sometimes called the ringed snake or water snake, is a Eurasian non-venomous colubrid snake. It is often found near water and feeds almost exclusively on amphibians.
Subspecies
Many subspecies are recogniz ...
(Ukrainian and Belarusian
вуж, Russian
уж, from
Old East Slavic
Old East Slavic (traditionally also Old Russian; be, старажытнаруская мова; russian: древнерусский язык; uk, давньоруська мова) was a language used during the 9th–15th centuries by East ...
ꙋжь,
Proto-Slavic
Proto-Slavic (abbreviated PSl., PS.; also called Common Slavic or Common Slavonic) is the Attested language, unattested, linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed proto-language of all Slavic languages. It represents Slavic speech approximately ...
ǫžь), which is abundant in the valley of the river. However, the expected
cognate form in Slovak would be *Už (compare Slovak
užovka "adder") while the actual Slovak form of the name is ''Uh''. Another possibility is that the name derives from a
Proto-Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo-E ...
root meaning "angle" or "corner" (the etymological source of Ukrainian
вугол, Slovak
uhol).
References
Rivers of Slovakia
Rivers of Zakarpattia Oblast
International rivers of Europe
Slovakia–Ukraine border
{{Slovakia-river-stub