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The Vjosa (; indefinite form: ) or Aoös () is a river in northwestern Greece and southwestern Albania. Its total length is about , of which the first are in Greece, and the remaining in Albania. Its drainage basin is and its average discharge is . The main tributaries are Voidomatis, Sarantaporos, Drino and Shushicë. The river arises in the
Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; ; ; ) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly long, with a maximum elevation of (Smolikas, Mount Smolikas). Because it runs along the border of Thessaly and Epiru ...
mountains of
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
, Greece, and generally flows northwest. It enters Albania near Çarshovë, and empties into the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
just north of
Vlorë Vlorë ( ; ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, third most populous city of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surr ...
. Generally wild and unpolluted, the river is surrounded by the Vikos–Aoös National Park in Greece, and the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape near its mouth. In December 2020, the Albanian portion of the river was designated a "Managed Nature Reserve" by the government. A campaign by the environmentalist groups to designate the whole Albanian part of the course a national park, to guard against the prospective hydroelectric projects, ultimately resulted in the creation of the Vjosa Wild River National Park on 15 March 2023.


Name

The Vjosa is known by a number of different names. In antiquity it was called ''Aoös'' () in
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
(e.g. in Eratosthenes' Geography), and ''Aous'' in
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
. In Albanian it is called ''Vjosë'' or ''Vjosa'', while in Greece it is known by its ancient name (Αώος in modern orthography), in medieval Latin maps was called ''Viossa'' as well as ''Vovousa'' () or ''Aias'' ().Λαμπρίδης Ιωάννης "Ζαγοριακά", Τυπογραφείον Αυγής, Αθήνα, 1870 In Greek it is also known as Βοϊούσα (Voioussa, pronounced vo-i-usa), especially in pre-20th century texts. According to historian Ap. Vakalopoulos (1977) the name Voioussa is the common Greek name of Aoos. ''Vjosa'' is also a common female Albanian given name.


Geography

The river arises in the
Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; ; ; ) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly long, with a maximum elevation of (Smolikas, Mount Smolikas). Because it runs along the border of Thessaly and Epiru ...
mountains of
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
, Greece, near the village of Vovousa. An artificial lake has been constructed at an elevation of , where a hydroelectric dam has been in place since 1987. It flows through the canyons of Vikos–Aoös National Park, and then through the town of
Konitsa Konitsa (, see also Konitsa#Name, names in other languages) is a town of Ioannina (regional unit), Ioannina in Epirus (region), Epirus, Greece. It is located north of the capital Ioannina and near the Albanian Border crossings of Albania, border. ...
, where it is joined by the Voidomatis. It enters Albania near Çarshovë, where it is joined by the Sarantaporos, and then continues northwest through Përmet, Këlcyrë, and
Tepelenë Tepelenë ( sq-definite, Tepelena) is a city and a municipality in Gjirokastër County, in the south of Albania. The town is on the left bank of the Vjosa River, about three kilometres downstream from its union with the Drino. Until the abolition ...
(where it is joined by the Drino), Memaliaj, Selenicë and Novoselë. It then flows into the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
northwest of
Vlorë Vlorë ( ; ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, third most populous city of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surr ...
. The river's mouth is located within the boundaries of the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape. In December 2020, the Albanian portion of the Vjosa was designated a "Managed Nature Reserve" by the government. The main tributaries of Vjosa are the Sarantaporos and Voidomatis in Greece, and the Drino and Shushicë in Albania. The main cities and towns along the river are, in downstream order, Vovousa and
Konitsa Konitsa (, see also Konitsa#Name, names in other languages) is a town of Ioannina (regional unit), Ioannina in Epirus (region), Epirus, Greece. It is located north of the capital Ioannina and near the Albanian Border crossings of Albania, border. ...
in Greece; and Çarshovë, Përmet, Këlcyrë,
Tepelenë Tepelenë ( sq-definite, Tepelena) is a city and a municipality in Gjirokastër County, in the south of Albania. The town is on the left bank of the Vjosa River, about three kilometres downstream from its union with the Drino. Until the abolition ...
, Memaliaj, Selenicë and Novoselë in Albania.


Antiquity

The valley of the Vjosa has provided one of the most important natural routes between the mountainous interior of
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
into southern
Illyria In classical and late antiquity, Illyria (; , ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; , ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyrians. The Ancient Gree ...
and towards the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
. This natural route must have been used for millennia, and continues to be used to the present day. Hecataeus (550–476 BC) refers to the river as ''Aias'' (), the name ''Anios'' () is used by
Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...
in
Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war. He ...
, while
Polybius Polybius (; , ; ) was a Greek historian of the middle Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , a universal history documenting the rise of Rome in the Mediterranean in the third and second centuries BC. It covered the period of 264–146 ...
,
Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding i ...
and
Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...
use the term ''Aoös''. In ancient times the upper course of the river was situated in Epirus, and the lower course in Illyria. Together with the Ceraunian Mountains the first part of the river up to around
Tepelenë Tepelenë ( sq-definite, Tepelena) is a city and a municipality in Gjirokastër County, in the south of Albania. The town is on the left bank of the Vjosa River, about three kilometres downstream from its union with the Drino. Until the abolition ...
marked the boundary between the classical regions of Illyria and Epirus, and between the Roman provinces of Epirus Nova and Epirus Vetus. The lower valley was inhabited by the indigenous tribes of Bylliones on the right shore and Amantes on the left shore. p.88. p. 59. Starting from mid-7th century BCE the southern Illyrian area of the lower Aoos experienced the emergence of proto-urban centers, including the fortifications of Kutë,
Klos KLOS (95.5 FM broadcasting, FM, "95-5 KLOS") is a commercial radio station City of license, licensed to Los Angeles, California, and serves the Greater Los Angeles area. The station is owned by Meruelo Group, Meruelo Media. KLOS airs a mainst ...
, Mashkjezë, Margëlliç and Strum on the right shore, and those of
Amantia Amantia (; ) was an ancient city and the main settlement of the Amantes, traditionally located in southern Illyria in classical antiquity. In Hellenistic times the city was either part of Illyrian kingdom, Illyria or Epirus (ancient state), E ...
, Mavrovë and Treport on the left shore. Apollonia in Illyria was founded on the right bank near the mouth of the river around 600 BC by Greek colonists from
Corinth Corinth ( ; , ) is a municipality in Corinthia in Greece. The successor to the ancient Corinth, ancient city of Corinth, it is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Sin ...
and possibly
Corcyra Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...
, who established a trading settlement on a largely abandoned coastal site by invitation of the local
Illyrians The Illyrians (, ; ) were a group of Indo-European languages, Indo-European-speaking people who inhabited the western Balkan Peninsula in ancient times. They constituted one of the three main Paleo-Balkan languages, Paleo-Balkan populations, alon ...
. It developed into an independent
polis Polis (: poleis) means 'city' in Ancient Greek. The ancient word ''polis'' had socio-political connotations not possessed by modern usage. For example, Modern Greek πόλη (polē) is located within a (''khôra''), "country", which is a πατ ...
, and thrived throughout classical antiquity becoming one of the most important urban centres in the wider region, perhaps representing the most important of the several classical towns of the same name. The Thesprotian tribe of Parauaioi received their name from the river, as those living beside it. Pausanias writes of "sharks" () in the river, as it flows through Thesprotia. It is mentioned as ''Avos'' () by
Stephanus of Byzantium Stephanus or Stephen of Byzantium (; , ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD) was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethnica'' (). Only meagre fragments of the dictionary survive, but the epit ...
in the sixth century AD. In 274 BC
Pyrrhus of Epirus Pyrrhus ( ; ; 319/318–272 BC) was a Greeks, Greek king and wikt:statesman, statesman of the Hellenistic period.Plutarch. ''Parallel Lives'',Pyrrhus... He was king of the Molossians, of the royal Aeacidae, Aeacid house, and later he became ki ...
defeated Antigonus II Gonatas near the river's banks. In 198 BC,
Philip V of Macedon Philip V (; 238–179 BC) was king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by the Social War (220–217 BC), Social War in Greece (220-217 BC) ...
and the Roman Titus Quinctius Flamininus, clashed in the Battle of the Aous. In 170 BC a plot to kidnap Aulus Hostilius Mancinus was foiled by Molossians by mistake.


Conservation


Greece

The Vikos–Aoös National Park ( ''Ethnikós Drymós Víkou–Aóou''), created in 1973, is a
national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...
in
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
in northwestern Greece and UNESCO Geopark. The national park encompasses of mountainous terrain, with numerous rivers, lakes, caves, canyons, and coniferous and deciduous forest. The core of the 3,400 hectare parkTrakolis: p. 3 is the Vikos Gorge, carved by the Voidomatis River, while the Aoos Gorge, Mount
Tymfi Tymphe (in Latin and English usage) or Tymfi (in the Greek government's preferred transliteration), Timfi, also Tymphi (, ) is a mountain in the northern Pindus mountain range, in northwestern Greece. It is part of the regional units of Greece, ...
, with its highest peak, Gamila, at , and a number of settlements forming the park's peripheral zone.


Albania

In February 2005, the Albanian government made the Vjose-Narte wetlands a protected area. This legislation followed Albania's ratification of the
Kyoto Protocol The was an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on the scientific consensus that global warming is oc ...
in December 2004. The river contributes water to the Vjosë-Levan-Fier irrigation canal, a canal that was built in the 1950s to irrigate the
Myzeqe The Myzeqe (; sq-definite, Myzeqeja; ) is a plain in the Western Lowlands of Albania. The Myzeqe is the largest and widest plain, measured by area, in the Lowlands. Location The Myzeqe plain is a large alluvial plain traversed by three main riv ...
. In December 2020, the Albanian portion of the river was designated a "Managed Nature Reserve" by the Albanian government. The Vjosa's potential for hydropower has attracted developers to submit proposal to planning authorities for dam projects along the river and its tributaries. By 2017, over 2000 dam projects had gained governmental approval on stretches of river throughout the Balkans, including the Vjosa's channel. Developers have met with opposition from European nature organisations including RiverWatch, EuroNatur, and EcoAlbania. A 2012 study assessed the hydromorphology of the Balkan's rivers, taking into account the structural status of 35,000 river kilometres. The study showed that the region's rivers are largely intact, with 30% deemed pristine and 50% slightly modified. In February 2020, a campaign to elevate the status of the Vjosa watershed to Vjosa National Park gained approval from 20 environmental groups under the leadership of EcoAlbania. The effort to create Europe's first wild river park and save 300 km of rivers and streams targeted several projects identified in a February 2021 proposal. In September 2020, Albanian prime minister
Edi Rama Edi Rama (born Edvin Kristaq Rama; 4 July 1964) is an Albanian politician, artist and writer who has been serving as the 33rd and incumbent prime minister of Albania since 2013 and chairman of the Socialist Party of Albania since 2005. He was M ...
announced that a protected area will be created around the Vjosa. In December 2020, the Albanian government designated the Vjosa River as a "Managed Nature Reserve" or nature park. Environmental groups are skeptical of the level of protection afforded by "protected" status. A national park designation would prohibit hydroelectric projects, airports, and other development; a protected area designation would not. In April 2021 a petition signed by Vjosa River scientists was delivered to Albanian president Ilir Meta. The scientists immediate concern is a plan by a Turkish-Albanian venture, Ayen ALB, to build a 50-metre high hydroelectric dam. It would be the first development to change the course of Albania's 200 kilometre portion of the river. The dam would flood areas populated with the 1,175 animal and plant species—some endangered. It would inundate farmland, destroy the river's fishery, and force thousands from their homes. Activists maintain that the government should focus on other less damaging renewable energy sources. On 15 March 2023, the Vjosa River became a protected national park under the name of the Vjosa Wild River National Park.


See also

* List of rivers of Albania *
List of rivers of Europe This article lists the principal rivers of Europe with their main tributaries. Scope The border of Europe and Asia is here defined as from the Kara Sea, along the Ural Mountains and Ural River to the Caspian Sea. While the crest of the Ca ...
* List of rivers of Greece


References


External links


Vjosa/Aoos River Ecomuseum Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vjosa Rivers of Albania Rivers of Greece International rivers of Europe Chaonia Illyrian Albania Labëria Landforms of Ioannina (regional unit) Rivers of Epirus (region) Pindus Braided rivers in Albania Natura 2000 in Greece