The Var (, ; it, Varo; la, Varus) is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
located in the southeast of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. It is long.
Its drainage basin is .
[Bassin versant : Var (Le)]
Observatoire Régional Eau et Milieux Aquatiques en PACA
The Var flows through the
Alpes-Maritimes
Alpes-Maritimes (; oc, Aups Maritims; it, Alpi Marittime, "Maritime Alps") is a department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the Italian border and Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, it ...
''
département
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...
'' for most of its length, with a short (~15 km or ~9 mi) stretch in the
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence or sometimes abbreviated as AHP (; oc, Aups d'Auta Provença; ) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France, bordering Alpes-Maritimes and Italy to the east, Var to the south, Vaucluse to the west ...
département. It is a unique case in France of a river not flowing in the ''département'' named after it (see
Var
Var or VAR may refer to:
Places
* Var (department), a department of France
* Var (river), France
* Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran
* Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
).
Until the beginning of the 19th century, the river had no bridges; it was the border between France and the
County of Nice
The County of Nice (french: Comté de Nice / Pays Niçois, it, Contea di Nizza/Paese Nizzardo, Niçard oc, Contèa de Niça/País Niçard) is a historical region of France located around the southeastern city of Nice and roughly equivalent t ...
, then part of
Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...
.
Name
The river name is attested in Latin as ''Vārus'' and in Ancient Greek as ''Ouãros'' (Οὐᾶρος). It stems from the
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...
root *''uōr''- (earlier ''*uer-''), meaning 'water, river' (cf. Sanskrit ''vār'', Old Norse ''vari'').
Hydrography
The Var rises near the
Col de la Cayolle
Col de la Cayolle (el. 2,326 m) is a high mountain pass in the French Alps at the border between the departments of Alpes-Maritimes and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence in France.
It connects Barcelonnette in the Ubaye Valley and Saint-Martin-d'Entraunes ...
(2,326 m/7,631 ft) in the
Maritime Alps
The Maritime Alps (french: Alpes Maritimes ; it, Alpi Marittime ) are a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps. They form the border between the regions of France, French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and the regions of Italy ...
and flows generally southeast to its outflow into the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...
between
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
and
Saint-Laurent-du-Var
Saint-Laurent-du-Var (; Occitan: ''Sant Laurenç de Var'', Italian: ''San Lorenzo del Varo'') is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera.
History
The town was founded in the ...
. Its main tributaries are the
Cians
The Cians is a mountain river that flows through the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France. It is long. Its drainage basin is .[Tinée
The Tinée (; oc, Tiniá) is a river that flows through the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France. It is long. Its drainage basin is .] , the
Vésubie
The Vésubie is a river in the southeast of France. It is a left tributary of the Var in the Maritime Alps. It is long. Its drainage basin is . , the
Coulomp
The Coulomp is a mountain river that flows through the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department of southeastern France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Over ...
, the
Estéron, the
Tuébi, the
Chalvagne
The Chalvagne (; oc, Chalvanha) is a mountain river that flows through the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department of southeastern France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It a ...
, the
Barlatte
The Barlatte is a short mountain river that flows through the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France. It is long. Its source is in the Maritime Alps, and it flows into the river Var near Guillaumes
Guillaumes (; oc, Guilherme; i ...
, the
Bourdous
The Bourdous is a short mountain river that flows through the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France. It is long. Its source is in the Maritime Alps
The Maritime Alps (french: Alpes Maritimes ; it, Alpi Marittime ) are a mountain ran ...
and the
Roudoule
The Roudoule (; oc, Rodola) is a long river that flows through the Alpes-Maritimes department of south-eastern France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises ...
.
The Var flows through the following départements and towns:
*
Alpes-Maritimes
Alpes-Maritimes (; oc, Aups Maritims; it, Alpi Marittime, "Maritime Alps") is a department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the Italian border and Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, it ...
:
Guillaumes
Guillaumes (; oc, Guilherme; it, Guglielmi) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France.
It was part of the historic County of Nice until 1860 as ''Guglielmi''.
The Valberg ski resort is, in part, located on thi ...
*
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence or sometimes abbreviated as AHP (; oc, Aups d'Auta Provença; ) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France, bordering Alpes-Maritimes and Italy to the east, Var to the south, Vaucluse to the west ...
:
Entrevaux
Entrevaux (; oc, Entrevaus) is a commune (municipality), former episcopal seat (not bishopric in title, that remained the Diocese of Glandèves) and Latin Catholic titular see in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.
...
*
Alpes-Maritimes
Alpes-Maritimes (; oc, Aups Maritims; it, Alpi Marittime, "Maritime Alps") is a department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the Italian border and Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, it ...
:
Puget-Théniers
Puget-Théniers (; oc, Lo Puget Tenier; it, Poggetto Tenieri) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France.
Geography
It is situated on in the valley of the Var.
History
It was part of the historic County of Nice ...
,
Carros
Carros (; oc, Carròs) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. Carros is one of sixteen villages grouped together by the Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur tourist department as the ''Route des Villages Perchés'' (Rou ...
,
Saint-Laurent-du-Var
Saint-Laurent-du-Var (; Occitan: ''Sant Laurenç de Var'', Italian: ''San Lorenzo del Varo'') is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera.
History
The town was founded in the ...
References
Bibliography
*
Rivers of France
Rivers of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Rivers of Alpes-Maritimes
Rivers of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Braided rivers in France
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