The Rio Mondego () or Mondego River is the longest river entirely within Portuguese territory. It has its source in

Serra da Estrela Serra da Estrela () is the highest mountain range in Continental Portugal. Together with the Serra da Lousã it is the westernmost constituent range of the Sistema Central and also one of the highest in the system. It includes mainland Portugal's ...

, the highest mountain range in

mainland Portugal Continental Portugal ( pt, Portugal continental, ) or mainland Portugal comprises the bulk of the Portuguese Republic, namely that part on the Iberian Peninsula and so in Continental Europe, having approximately 95% of the total population and 9 ...

(i.e. excluding the Portuguese islands). It runs from the Gouveia municipality, at above sea level in Serra da Estrela, to its mouth in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

next to the city of

Figueira da Foz Figueira da Foz (), also known as Figueira for short, is a city and a municipality in the Coimbra District, in Portugal. Practically at the midpoint of the Iberian Peninsula's Atlantic coast, it is located at the mouth of the Mondego River, west ...

Etymology

The river's name is believed to be derived from the pre-Roman,

Hispano-Celtic Hispano-Celtic is a term for all forms of Celtic spoken in the Iberian Peninsula before the arrival of the Romans (c. 218 BC, during the Second Punic War). In particular, it includes: * A northeastern inland language attested at a relati ...

word ''Munda'' or ''Monda'' — by which names it had been referred to in the

classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

and

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...

—, later latinised into ''Mondæcus'' until evolving into the present name.

Geography

It flows through the districts of Guarda,

Viseu Viseu () is a city and municipality in the Centro Region of Portugal and the capital of the district of the same name, with a population of 100,000 inhabitants, and center of the Viseu Dão Lafões intermunipical community, with 267,633 inhabi ...

and

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto, and Braga, it is the largest cit ...

, all in

Central Portugal The Central Region ( pt, Região do Centro, ) or Central Portugal is one of the statistical regions of Portugal. The cities with major administrative status inside this region are Coimbra, Aveiro, Viseu, Caldas da Rainha, Leiria, Castelo Branco ...

. It flows near the towns of

Celorico da Beira Celorico da Beira () is a municipality in Guarda District in Portugal. The municipality population in 2011 was 7,693,Fornos de Algodres Fornos may refer to the following places in Portugal: * Fornos (Castelo de Paiva), a civil parish in the municipality of Castelo de Paiva * Fornos (Freixo de Espada à Cinta), a civil parish in the municipality of Freixo de Espada à Cinta * Forno ...

Nelas Nelas () is a municipality located in the Centro Region of continental Portugal. The population in 2011 was 14,037, in an area of 125.71 km². History Settlement of the territory of Nelas dates back to the settlement by Neolithic and Stone a ...

Tábua Tábua () is a town and municipality of the Coimbra District, in Portugal. The municipality contains the town of Tábua. The population in 2011 was 12,071, in an area of 199.79 km². Parishes Administratively, the municipality is divided into ...

Carregal do Sal Carregal do Sal () is a municipality in Viseu District in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 9,835, in an area of 116.89 km2. The present mayor is Atílio dos Santos Nunes, elected by the Social Democratic Party. The municipal holiday is th ...

and

Mortágua Mortágua ( or ) is a municipality in the district of Viseu, Portugal. The population in 2011 was 9,607, in an area of 251.18 km2. The present mayor is José Júlio Norte, elected in 2013 by the Social Democratic Party. History Legend sug ...

and the cities of

Seia Seia () is a municipality in Guarda District in Portugal. The population in 2021 was 21,755, in an area of . Its urban population is about 7,000. Seia was elevated to city status on July 3, 1986. The municipality is situated on the northwestern slo ...

, Gouveia, Guarda,

Oliveira do Hospital Oliveira do Hospital () is a municipality in the district of Coimbra, in the central part of continental Portugal. The population in 2011 was 20,855, in an area of 234.52 km². History Inhabited by ancient civilizations, Oliveira do Hospita ...

Mangualde Mangualde () is a municipality in the subregion of Dão-Lafões (historical Beira Interior), central region of Portugal. The population in 2011 was 19,880, in an area of 219.26 km2. History The region of Mangualde has been a crossroads of ma ...

and

Santa Comba Dão Santa Comba Dão () is a city and a municipality in the Viseu District in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 11,597, in an area of 111.95 km2. The city proper has a population of 3,300. The present mayor is Leonel Gouveia, elected in 2013 ...

, before crossing the town of

Penacova Penacova ( or ) is a town and a municipality in the Coimbra District, in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 15,251, in an area of 216.73 km². Parishes Administratively, the municipality is divided into 8 civil parishes (''freguesias''): ...

. The river widens by the city of

(a historical city, the largest of the region, with a

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

), and the

Montemor-o-Velho Montemor-o-Velho () is a town and municipality of the Coimbra District, in Portugal. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 26,171, in an area of 228.96 km². History In 711, the Arab occupation of the Iberian Peninsula began. Mont ...

municipality (known for its castle and rice fields), before reaching the Atlantic Ocean at the city of

. There are two main dams along the Mondego, the

Aguieira Dam Aguieira Dam ( pt, Barragem da Aguieira, links=no) also known as Foz do Dão Dam ( pt, Barragem da Foz do Dão, links=no) is a concrete multiple arch dam on the Mondego River, where the river forms the border line between the districts of Coimbra ...

and the Raiva Dam, as well as a smaller one at Coimbra's main bridge.

Tributaries

One of its tributaries is the Rio Dão, which gives its name to the Dão wine region. Another is the Alva River, which enters the Mondego just before Penacova. The

Ceira River The Ceira River () is a river in central Portugal arising out of the Serra do Açor. It is a lefthand tributary of the Mondego River, which it enters from the south, just upstream of the city of Coimbra. Course The Ceira arises in the Covilhã Mu ...

enters the Mondego just south of

along National Road 17.

Gallery

File:Coimbra tozu.JPG, Coimbra and the Mondego Image:Parque do Mondego - Coimbra.jpg, Mondego bank in Coimbra Image:Ponte nova coimbra2.jpg,

Rainha Santa Isabel Bridge The Rainha Santa Isabel Bridge (Portuguese: ''Ponte Rainha Santa Isabel'') is a cable-stayed bridge with semi-fan system completed in 2003 and opened in 2004, crossing the Mondego River. Although it had an initial estimated value of €38.65 millio ...

over the Mondego Image:Coimbra à noite.jpg, Mondego in Coimbra by night Image:Mondego_caldasfelgueira.jpg , Mondego as it passes Caldas de Felgueira, Nelas, Portugal

References

Rivers of Portugal Mondego basin Coimbra Geography of Guarda District {{Portugal-river-stub

Etymology

Geography

Tributaries

Gallery

See also

References