Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...
, a 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 , ...
discharge
Discharge may refer to
Expel or let go
* Discharge, the act of firing a gun
* Discharge, or termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer
* Military discharge, the release of a member of the armed forces from serv ...
at the
mouth
In animal anatomy, the mouth, also known as the oral cavity, or in Latin cavum oris, is the opening through which many animals take in food and issue vocal sounds. It is also the cavity lying at the upper end of the alimentary canal, bounded on t ...
is .
The main city on the Argeș is Pitești. Upstream, it is retained by the Vidraru Dam, which has created Lake Vidraru. Its upper course, upstream of Lake Vidraru, is also called ''Capra''.
Name
The river is believed to be the same as Ὀρδησσός ''Ordessus'', a name mentioned by
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
historian
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known for ...
. The etymology of Argeș is not clear. Traditionally, it was considered that it is derived from the ancient name, through a reconstructed term, *''Argessis''. The capital of Dacian leader
Burebista
Burebista ( grc, Βυρεβίστας, Βοιρεβίστας) was the king of the Getae and Dacian tribes from 82/61BC to 45/44BC. He was the first king who successfully unified the tribes of the Dacian kingdom, which comprised the area loc ...
was named ''Argedava'', but it appears that it has no link with the name for the river.Alexandru Madgearu, "Români și pecenegi în sudul Transilvaniei", in Zeno-Karl Pinter, Ioan-Marian Țiplic, Maria-Emilia Țiplic (eds.), ''Relații interetnice în Transilvania, Sec. VI-XIII'', Editura Economică, Bucharest, p. 117. .
An alternate etymology derives the name of the river from a
Pecheneg
The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks tr, Peçenek(ler), Middle Turkic: , ro, Pecenegi, russian: Печенег(и), uk, Печеніг(и), hu, Besenyő(k), gr, Πατζινάκοι, Πετσενέγοι, Πατζινακίται, ka, პაჭ ...
word, transliterated into Romanian as ''argiș'' (meaning "higher ground"). The earliest recorded variants of the name, referring to the city of
Curtea de Argeș
Curtea de Argeș () is a municipality in Romania on the left bank of the river Argeș, where it flows through a valley of the Southern Carpathians (the Făgăraș Mountains), on the railway from Pitești to the Turnu Roșu Pass. It is part of Ar ...
(lit. "The Court on the Argeș"), also suggest a derivation from this word: ''Argyas'' (1369), ''Argies'' (1379), ''Arghiș'' (1427), the river probably taking the name of the city.
Localities
The following localities are situated along the river Argeș, from source to mouth: Căpățânenii Ungureni,
Căpățânenii Pământeni
Arefu is a commune in Argeș County, Muntenia, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria t ...
Poienarii de Argeș
Poienarii de Argeș is a commune in Argeș County, Muntenia
Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Rom ...
Curtea de Argeș
Curtea de Argeș () is a municipality in Romania on the left bank of the river Argeș, where it flows through a valley of the Southern Carpathians (the Făgăraș Mountains), on the railway from Pitești to the Turnu Roșu Pass. It is part of Ar ...
Găești
Găești () is a town in Dâmbovița County, Muntenia, Romania with a population of 12,767.
History
The name of the town comes from a family of nobles ( boyars) who owned most of the lands on which the town is now situated. Their name was G� ...
,
Bolintin-Deal
Bolintin-Deal is a commune located in Giurgiu County, Muntenia, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Bolintin-Deal and Mihai Vodă. At the 2011 census, 99.5% of inhabitants were Romanians and 0.4% Roma; the latter formed a higher percentage of ...
,
Adunații-Copăceni
Adunații-Copăceni is a commune located in Giurgiu County, Muntenia, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. ...
The river Argeș and some of its tributaries are used for hydro energy. The hydroelectrical system consists of several dams, lakes, tunnels and power plants. The lakes built on the Argeș River are: Vidraru, Oiești, Cerbureni, Curtea de Argeș, Zigoneni, Merișani, Budeasa, Bascov, Pitești, Călinești (or Golești), Zăvoiu (near
Mătăsaru
Mătăsaru is a commune in Dâmbovița County, Muntenia
Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Române ...
), Ogrezeni and Mihăilești. There are dams also on its tributaries.
Tributaries
The following rivers are tributaries to the river Argeș (from source to mouth):
*Left tributaries: Braia, Mândra,
Buda
Buda (; german: Ofen, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Budim, Будим, Czech and sk, Budín, tr, Budin) was the historic capital of the Kingdom of Hungary and since 1873 has been the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest, on the ...
,
Valea cu Pești
The Valea cu Pești is a left tributary of the river Argeș in Romania. It discharges into Lake Vidraru
Lake Vidraru ( ro, Lacul Vidraru) is an artificial lake in Romania. It was created in 1965 by the construction of the Vidraru Dam on the A ...
Luica
Luica is a commune in Călărași County, Muntenia, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulga ...
Valea Danului
Valea Danului is a commune in Argeș County, Muntenia, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bu ...
,
Tutana
The Tutana is a right tributary of the river Argeș in Romania. It flows into the Argeș in Mănicești. Its length is and its basin size is .
References
Rivers of Romania
Rivers of Argeș County
{{Argeș-river-stub ...
List of longest rivers of Romania
This is a list of rivers of Romania which entirely or partially flow through Romania.
Longest rivers
The length and drainage area represent only the part of the river within Romania.Battle of the Argeș