The Aura River ( Finnish ''Aurajoki'';

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

''Aura å'') is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...

in south-western

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bo ...

. Its sources are in Oripää, and it flows through Pöytyä,

Aura Aura most commonly refers to: * Aura (paranormal), a field of luminous multicolored radiation around a person or object * Aura (symptom), a symptom experienced before a migraine or seizure Aura may also refer to: Places Extraterrestrial * 1488 ...

and Lieto before discharging into the Archipelago Sea in the middle of the city of

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

. The waters of the Aura river are brown. The total length of the river is about , and it contains eleven rapids, the biggest of which is Nautelankoski at Lieto. The reserve

tap water Tap water (also known as faucet water, running water, or municipal water) is water supplied through a tap, a water dispenser valve. In many countries, tap water usually has the quality of drinking water. Tap water is commonly used for drinking, ...

for Turku Region is drawn from the Aura, the city's secondary waterworks being situated by the Halinen rapids. The word "Aura" appears to come from an archaic

word for waterway (''aathra'', which is still current in the form ''ådra''), but in Finnish it translates as "plough," a name the river lives up to. Situated in an agricultural zone, it is made turbid by

surface runoff Surface runoff (also known as overland flow) is the flow of water occurring on the ground surface when excess rainwater, stormwater, meltwater, or other sources, can no longer sufficiently rapidly infiltrate in the soil. This can occur when the ...

from nearby farms with

eutrophication Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...

as the biggest threat. Its condition has been improving since the 1970s and the Aura river is now clean enough to support

salmon Salmon () is the common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of ...

. The banks of the river have been inhabited for at least 6,000 years. The area is notable for the cultural heritage in Finland. The

archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

of Finland has been situated near the river since the thirteenth century.

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References

Rivers of Finland Turku Aura, Finland Drainage basins of the Baltic Sea Landforms of Southwest Finland Tourist attractions in Turku {{Finland-river-stub

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See also

References