Ibar river
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The Ibar ( sr-cyrl, Ибар, ), also known as the Ibër and Ibri ( sq, Ibër, Ibri), is a
river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...
that flows through eastern
Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...
, northern
Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
and central
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
, with a total length of . The river begins in the
Hajla Hajla ( sr-cyrl, Хајла; sq, Hajlë) is a mountain located between the borders of Kosovo and Montenegro. It has several peaks that reach over , the highest having which is also called Hajla. The northern slopes contains the spring formation ...
mountain, in
Rožaje Rožaje ( cnr, Рожаје, bs, Rožaje), ; sq, Rozhajë) is a town in northeastern Montenegro. As of 2011, the city has a population of 9,567 inhabitants. Surrounded by hills to its west and mountains to its east (notably Mount Hajla), the ...
, eastern Montenegro, and passes through southwestern Serbia and northern Kosovo, where it leads back into Serbia to flow into the
West Morava West Morava ( sr, Западна Морава, Zapadna Morava, ) is a river in Central Serbia, a 184 km-long headstream of the Great Morava, which it forms with the South Morava. It was known as Brongus in antiquity. Origin The West Mora ...
river near
Kraljevo Kraljevo ( sr-cyr, Краљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Raška District in central Serbia. It is situated on the confluence of West Morava and Ibar River, Ibar, in the geographical region of ...
, central Serbia. It belongs to the
Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...
drainage basin. Its own drainage area is , with an average discharge of 60 m³/s at the mouth. It is not navigable.


Etymology

The scholar Ejup Mushoviq theorized that the word derives from the Albanian ''i Bardhë'', meaning "white".' Professor Niko Zupančić has theorized that the word Ibar is related to the
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
word for "river" (''i-ba/r/i''), which is also how the
Ebro , name_etymology = , image = Zaragoza shel.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza , map = SpainEbroBasin.png , map_size = , map_caption = The Ebro ...
river in
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
received its name.Тврђење професора Нике Зупанчића
/ref> Other scholars have suggested that the name is derived from
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece 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 ...
, given that the river's ancient name was ''Hiberus''.Ибар потиче од албанске речи "shkumbon", историја моста на Ибру дуга више од 100 година приступљено 3. јула 2018.
/ref>


Upper course

The Ibar originates from six springs on the
Hajla Hajla ( sr-cyrl, Хајла; sq, Hajlë) is a mountain located between the borders of Kosovo and Montenegro. It has several peaks that reach over , the highest having which is also called Hajla. The northern slopes contains the spring formation ...
mountain in eastern Montenegro. It generally flows north-east, passing through Ibarac,
Rožaje Rožaje ( cnr, Рожаје, bs, Rožaje), ; sq, Rozhajë) is a town in northeastern Montenegro. As of 2011, the city has a population of 9,567 inhabitants. Surrounded by hills to its west and mountains to its east (notably Mount Hajla), the ...
, Radetina and Bać, after which it enters Serbia. Passing through the most southern part of
Raška District The Raška District ( sr, / , ) is one of eight administrative districts of Šumadija and Western Serbia. It expands to the south-western part of the country. According to the 2011 census results, it has a population of 309,258 inhabitants. Th ...
, it flows through several small villages. In this whole area, the river has no major tributaries, but many short streams which flow into it from surrounding mountains. This part also represents the route of one of two main roads connecting Serbia and Montenegro (''Ibarska magistrala'').


Middle course

Continuing south, the river enters Kosovo and passes through Gazivode,
Zubin Potok Zubin Potok ( sr-cyr, Зубин Поток, sq-definite, Zubin Potoku); is a town and municipality located in the Mitrovica District in Kosovo. As of 2015, it has an estimated population of 15,200 inhabitants. It covers an area of , and consis ...
, Ugljare, Zupče and Šipolje, reaching the city of Mitrovica. There, it makes a sharp, elbow turn to the north, flowing through
Zvečan Zvečan ( sr-Cyrl, Звечан) or Zveçan ( sq-definite, Zveçani) is a town and municipality located in the Mitrovica District in Kosovo. As of 2015, it has a population of 16,650 inhabitants. It covers an area of , and consists of a town and ...
, Slatina, Sočanica, Leposavić, Dren and
Lešak Lešak ( sr-cyr, Лешак, sq, Leshak) is a town settlement of Leposavić in northern Kosovo. It has population of 2,180, with an ethnic Serb majority. Lešak was, along with the Leposavić municipality, ceded to SAP Kosovo The Sociali ...
, entering central Serbia at the village of Donje Jarinje.


In Kosovo

At Kosovo, the river is dammed, creating the artificial Lake Gazivoda (area , altitude , depth ). Water from the lake is used for industrial and mining facilities in the Mitrovica/ Trepča area. Below Gazivoda another reservoir is created, Lake Pridvorice. These lakes allow irrigation of an area of 300 km2, representing part of a plan, never completed, of a huge Ibar-
Lepenac The Lepenac ( sq, Lepenci ; mk, ; sr, Лепенац, ) is a river in southern Kosovo and northern North Macedonia, a long left tributary to the Vardar river. Sirinić The Lepenac springs out on the Kodža Balkan mountain, east of the ci ...
Hydrosystem, which was supposed to regulate the Ibar-Sitnica-Lepenac watercourse (including ecological protection, irrigation and power production). At Mitrovica, the river enters a minerals and ore-rich area of the western slopes of
Kopaonik Kopaonik ( sr-cyr, Копаоник, ; sq, Kopaoniku) is a mountain range located in Serbia and Kosovo. The highest point is the Pančić's Peak with . The central part of the Kopaonik plateau was declared a national park in 1981 which today cove ...
mountain, which it follows for the next or so. The area is especially rich in
lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
,
zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
and
silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...
(Stari Trg, Trepča and Leposavić mines). Right on its elbow turn, the Ibar receives its longest (right) tributary, the
Sitnica The Sitnica ( sq, Sitnicë; sr-Cyrl, Ситница) is a river in Kosovo. It flows into the Ibar at Mitrovica, and it is the longest river that flows completely within Kosovo. History In the 14th century, during the reign of king Milutin ...
.


In Serbia

Entering central Serbia again, the river receives its major tributaries: the Raška, Studenica and Lopatnica, from the left, and the Jošanica. In this section, the river has carved the long and deep Ibar gorge, which is the natural route for the major road in this part of Serbia, the
Ibar Highway State Road 22, commonly known as Ibar Highway ( sr, Ибарска магистрала, Ibarska magistrala), is an IB-class road, connecting Belgrade with Šumadija and Western Serbia and finally with Montenegro at Špiljani border crossing. It ...
. This stretch of the river is famous for its pinched meanders and gigantic whirlpools. The whole area is long (meridionally stretched), and at Serbia's parts is popularly divided into several colorfully named valleys: * ''Dolina istorije'' (Serbian: Долина историје; Valley of history), consisting of ruins of the medieval city of Maglič, the monastery of Studenica, the monastery of
Žiča The Žiča Monastery ( sr, Манастир Жича, Manastir Žiča, or ) is an early 13th-century Serbian Orthodox monastery near Kraljevo, Serbia. The monastery, together with the Church of the Holy Dormition, was built by the first King o ...
, the monastery of Gradac, etc.; * ''Dolina jorgovana'' (Serbian: Долина јоргована; Valley of the lilacs); * ''Dolina banja'' (Serbian: Долина бања; Valley of the spas), with many spas and springs, such as Jošanička Banja, Mataruška Banja and Bogutovačka Banja. The gorge is carved between the mountains of Golija,
Čemerno Čemerno (Serbian Cyrillic: Чемерно) is a mountain in western Serbia, near the town of Ivanjica. Its highest peak ''Smrdljuč'' has an elevation of above sea level. Geography From the south, mountain plato Čemerno is limited by the val ...
and Troglav from the east, and Kopaonik,
Željin Željin ( sr-cyr, Жељин) is a mountain in central Serbia, near the town of Vrnjačka Banja. It belongs to the Kopaonik mountain massif In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexur ...
and
Stolovi Stolovi (Serbian Cyrillic: Столови) is a mountain in central Serbia, near the city of Kraljevo Kraljevo ( sr-cyr, Краљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Raška District in central Serbia ...
from the west. This is a continuation of Kopaonik's mining-rich area, including deposits of iron ore (Kopaonik, Raška), nickel (Kopaonik), asbestos (Brvenik), magnesite (Bela Stena) and hard coal (Baljevac, Ušće and Jarando). The Ibar has previously gained notoriety as being the most polluted river in Serbia (together with its major tributary, the Sitnica), especially from frequent spills of extremely poisonous phenol, which causes constant problems for the population of Kraljevo, since the city uses the river's water for public waterworks.


See also

*
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 Caucas ...
*
Rivers of Serbia This is a list of the rivers of Serbia, either those flowing entirely or partially within Serbia proper, or just being a border rivers. Drainage basins All rivers in Serbia belong to the drainage basins of three seas: Black Sea, Adriatic Sea ...
*
Rivers of Montenegro This is a list of rivers in Montenegro.Jezera i rijeke
Montenegro Travel *Bijela *Bistrica * List of rivers of Kosovo


References

* ''Mala Prosvetina Enciklopedija'', Third edition (1985); Prosveta; * Jovan Đ. Marković (1990): ''Enciklopedijski geografski leksikon Jugoslavije'' Svjetlost-Sarajevo; {{Authority control Rivers of Serbia Rivers of Montenegro Rivers of Kosovo International rivers of Europe