The River Hiz is a small () tributary river in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

that feeds the River Ivel that, in turn, feeds the

River Great Ouse The River Great Ouse ( ) is a river in England, the longest of several British rivers called "Ouse". From Syresham in Northamptonshire, the Great Ouse flows through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to drain into the ...

. Starting at its source of a chalk fed spring just south of the village of Charlton, the river winds its way through the county of

, moving its way into and through

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district of Hertfordshire, England. The town dates from at least the 7th century. It lies in the valley of the River Hiz at the north-eastern end of the Chiltern Hills ...

, where it meets the River Oughton and River Purwell. The Hiz finally meets the River Ivel near the village of

Henlow Henlow is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about south-east of the county town of Bedford. The name Henlow is believed to derive from the old Eng ...

. The Hicca Way, inaugurated in 2012, is a footpath which follows the course of the river. The Hiz is a focal point in the town of Hitchin, with a market that takes place historically by its banks. The Hiz also runs past the Arlesey Old Moat and Glebe Meadows nature reserve in

Arlesey Arlesey ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England. It is near the border with Hertfordshire, about north-west of Letchworth Garden City, north of Hitchin and south of Biggleswade. Arlesey ra ...

. Although small, the Hiz attracts a great deal of wildlife. There are many birds around this area, which include

swan Swans are birds of the genus ''Cygnus'' within the family Anatidae. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe (biology) ...

duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...

coot Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usual ...

and

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

s. Fish inhabit the river (

trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...

mainly) and there is also evidence of

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which includes weasels, badgers, mink, and wolverines, among ...

Toponymy

The z in Hiz is a Domesday-Book abbreviation for ts (or tch), and Hiz is properly pronounced "Hitch". This fact seems to be little known, and Hiz is now normally said as it is spelled. It may take its name from the Hicce tribe, who inhabited the area and gave their name to Hitchin. Ekwall says that Hiz/Hitch is a probably back-formation from Hitchin, which in turn is the dative plural of Hicce. Norden says the name is derived from a wood called Hitch, but Ekwall believes this is a conflation with ''Wychwood'', for which the Old English is ''Hwiccawudu''.

References

External links

* Rivers of Hertfordshire Rivers of Bedfordshire Hitchin {{England-river-stub