The Oise ( ; ) is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, flowing for from its source in the Belgian province of Hainaut, south of

Chimay Chimay (, ) is a city and Municipalities of Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Hainaut Province, province of Hainaut, Belgium. In 2006, Chimay had a population of 9,774. The area is 197.10 km2 which gives a population density ...

. It crosses the border with France after about , and flows into the

Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plat ...

Conflans-Sainte-Honorine Conflans-Sainte-Honorine () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris. The commune was originally named for its g ...

, a north-western suburb of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Its main tributary is the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; ) is a French departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne (river), Aisne. In 2020, it had a population of 529,374. Geography The department borders No ...

. It gave its name to the

French departments In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the Regions of France, administrative regions a ...

Oise Oise ( ; ; ) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isariens'', after the Latin name for the river, Isara. It had a population of 829,419 in 2019.< ...

and

Val-d'Oise Val-d'Oise (, "Vale of the Oise") is a department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It was created in 1968 following the split of the Seine-et-Oise department. In 2019, Val-d'Oise had a population of 1,249,674.< ...

Places along the river

In France, the Oise flows through the following ''

départements In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

'' and towns: *

Hirson Hirson (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Location Hirson is adjacent to Belgium. It is located in the northeastern Departments of France, ...

Guise Guise ( , ; ) is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. The city was the birthplace of the noble family of Guise, Dukes of Guise, who later became Princes of Joinville. Population Sights The remains of t ...

Chauny Chauny () is a Communes of France, commune in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History There has been a settlement on the site, more or less continuously, since at least the Carolingian era. Kno ...

(named after the river):

Noyon Noyon (; ; , Noviomagus of the Viromandui, Veromandui, then ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department, Northern France. Geography Noyon lies on the river Oise (river), Oise, about northeast of Paris. The ...

Compiègne Compiègne (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department of northern France. It is located on the river Oise (river), Oise, and its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois'' (). Administration Compiègne is t ...

Creil Creil () is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department, northern France. The Creil station is an important railway junction. History Archaeological remains in the area include a Neolithic site as well as a late ...

(named after the river):

Auvers-sur-Oise Auvers-sur-Oise (, "Auvers-on-Oise (river), Oise") is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Val-d'Oise, on the northwestern outskirts of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre zero, centre of Paris. I ...

Pontoise Pontoise () is a commune north of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise. Administration Pontoise is the official (capital) of the Val-d'Oise '' département'', although in reality the ' ...

Cergy Cergy () is a commune in the French department of Val-d'Oise, to the northwest of Paris. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise, created in the 1960s, of which it is the central and most populated commun ...

Jouy-le-Moutier Jouy-le-Moutier () is a commune in the Val-d'Oise department, in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise, created in the 1960s. History The name ''Jouy-le-Moutie ...

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.Conflans-Sainte-Honorine Conflans-Sainte-Honorine () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris. The commune was originally named for its g ...

Navigation

Over the past few centuries, the Oise has played an important role as an inland shipping waterway connecting the Seine (and thus Paris) with the coastal regions of northern France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

described his canoeing trip on the Oise in his first published book, ''

An Inland Voyage ''An Inland Voyage'' (1878) is a travelogue by Robert Louis Stevenson about a canoeing trip through France and Belgium in 1876. It is Stevenson's earliest book and a pioneering work of outdoor literature. As a young man, Stevenson desired ...

''. With the projected construction of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal, a high-capacity water transport system currently in development, the Oise will be linked at Janville, north of

, with the high-capacity

Canal Dunkerque-Escaut The Dunkirk-Scheldt Canal is a 189 km long series of historic canals, and the canalised river Scheldt that were substantially rebuilt from the mid-1950s up to ca. 1980, with some new sections, from Dunkirk to the Belgian border at Mortagne-d ...

, east of

Arleux Arleux () is a commune in the Nord département in northern France. Geography The river Sensée joins the Canal du Nord at Arleux. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 647 comm ...

. The Seine-Nord Europe Canal will replace the old

Canal de Saint-Quentin The Canal de Saint-Quentin () is a canal in northern France connecting the canalised river Escaut in Cambrai to the Canal latéral à l'Oise and Canal de l'Oise à l'Aisne in Chauny. History The canal was built in two phases, the second much l ...

and the current

Canal du Nord The Canal du Nord (, literally ''Canal of the North'') is a long canal in northern France. The canal connects the Canal latéral à l'Oise in Pont-l'Évêque to the Sensée Canal in Arleux. The French government, in partnership with coal-min ...

, the capacity of which is far below standard. When the new Seine-Nord connection is complete, it will allow large vessels to transport goods from the Seine, and thus Paris and its surrounding area, to the ports of

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

and

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

. Part of the overall project consists of upgrading the river Oise itself between Creil and Compiègne, a project called MAGEO (''Mise au gabarit européen de l'Oise'') that was put out to public consultation in 2013. Some bends need to be eased and bridges raised to meet the requirements of a class Vb inland waterway.

Tributaries

Tributaries include

Right bank

* Noirieu * Divette * Mas or Matz * Aronde * Brèche *

Thérain The Thérain () is a river in France, tributary of the Oise. It is long. It rises between Saint-Michel-d'Halescourt and Grumesnil in Seine-Maritime at 175 meters elevation. It flows generally southeast, through Songeons, Milly-sur-Thérain, ...

Left bank

* Gland *

Thon Thon may refer to: * Thon (mythology), a figure from Greek mythology *Thon (name), a surname and given name * Thon (river), northern France * Thon ''(A Canticle for Leibowitz)'', an academic rank similar to a university "don" in the science fic ...

* Serre * Ailette * Ru de Servais *

* Automne * Nonette * Thève

References

External links

River Oise and Canal latéral à l'Oise
maps and information, on places, ports and moorings on the canal, by the author of ''Inland Waterways of France'', Imray
Navigation details for 80 French rivers and canals
(French waterways website section) {{Authority control International rivers of Europe Rivers of Belgium Rivers of France Rivers of Aisne Rivers of Oise Rivers of Val-d'Oise Rivers of Yvelines Rivers of Hauts-de-France Rivers of Île-de-France Rivers of Hainaut (province) Rivers of the Ardennes (Belgium) Rivers of the Ardennes (France) Chimay