The Svislach (Belarusian: Свіслач, pronounced [ˈsʲvʲisɫatʂ]; Polish: Świsłocz) is a river in Grodno Oblast, western Belarus, and a left-bank tributary of the Neman River. A short stretch of its course runs along the Belarus–Poland border.
Course
The river rises near the town of Svislach in the southwestern part of Grodno Region, Belarus. It initially flows westward, then turns northward, following the Polish border near the village of Dublany. At Ozierany Małe it leaves the border and continues northeast, eventually joining the Neman River at the town of Svislach, southeast of Grodno.
Key characteristics
- Length: approximately 137–179 km (sources vary)
- Drainage basin: about 3,080 km²
- Mouth coordinates: 53°30′26″N 24°03′59″E
- Progression: Neman → Baltic Sea
- Tributaries: Odła and Usnarka
Name
The name is derived from the Indo-European root -visl-, meaning "flowing." The same root appears in the name of the Vistula River.
Note
There is a separate, more well-known river also called Svislach (or Svisloch) that flows through the city of Minsk; that river is a right-bank tributary of the Berezina River (Dnieper basin), not the Neman.
