Bārta (in Latvian), also named Bartuva (in Lithuanian), is a river in western

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

and

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

. It originates in the Plungė district, 3 km to north of Lake Plateliai. The Bārta flows in a northwesterly direction, passing through the Skuodas district and the city of Skuodas, before entering Latvia. The Bārta flows into Liepāja lake, which is connected with the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

. In its upper courses the valley formed by the Bārta is deep and narrow, while in its lower courses it is much wider. Bārta's main tributaries are the , , Luoba, , . Major settlements along the river: Nīca (Latvia), Skuodas (Lithuania), Mosėdis (Lithuania), (Latvia). The etymology of the name ''Bārta''/''Bartuva'' is unclear.

Kazimieras Būga Kazimieras Būga (; November 6, 1879 – December 2, 1924) was a Lithuanian linguist and philologist. He was a professor of linguistics, who mainly worked on the Lithuanian language. He was born at Pažiegė, near Dusetos, then part of the Russ ...

it derived from the Baltic tribe name '' Bartians''. Another version is that it is archaic name which may be connected to Old Russian ''бара'' ('puddle'), ('damp place between hills'), Illyrian *''bar(b)-'' ('puddle').

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* Rivers of Lithuania Rivers of Latvia International rivers of Europe Drainage basins of the Baltic Sea {{Latvia-river-stub