The Soła () 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 ...

in southern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, a right

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

. The Soła originates in the Western

Beskids The Beskids or Beskid Mountains (, , , (), ()) are a series of mountain ranges in the Carpathians, stretching from the Czech Republic in the west along the border of Poland with Slovakia up to Ukraine in the east. The highest mountain in the Be ...

mountain range near the border with

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

. It is made up of the confluence of several small creeks in the

Rajcza Rajcza is a village in Żywiec County, Silesian Voivodeship, in the historic province of Lesser Poland, close to the border with Slovakia. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Rajcza. It lies approximately south of ...

municipality. It runs downhill northeastwards through

Żywiec Basin Żywiec Basin (Prof. Jerzy Kondracki. Geografia fizyczna Polski. Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe. Warszawa. 1988. ) is a lowland, located in southern Poland, between the Little Beskids to the north, Silesian Beskids to the west, Żywiec Beskids ...

to the towns of

Żywiec Żywiec () is a town on the River Soła in southern Poland with 31,194 inhabitants (2019). It is situated within the Silesian Voivodeship, near the Żywiec Lake and Żywiec Landscape Park, one of the eight protected areas in the voivodeship. H ...

and

Kęty Kęty is a town in Oświęcim County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland with 18,955 inhabitants (2012). The town located in Silesian Foothills dates its earliest document from 1277 when Polish prince of Opole Władysław confirmed sale of the se ...

, forming the border between the Silesian and the

Żywiec Beskids The Żywiec Beskids (; ) is a mountain range in the Outer Western Carpathians in southern Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes an ...

. After , the Soła empties into the Vistula River after passing through the town of

Oświęcim Oświęcim (; ; ; ) is a town in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship in southern Poland, situated southeast of Katowice, near the confluence of the Vistula (''Wisła'') and Soła rivers. Oświęcim dates back to the 12th century, when it was an im ...

.Oficjalny serwis gminy Rajcza – rajcza.com
The river flows within metres of the

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

. The

Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum () is a museum on the site of the Nazi German Auschwitz concentration camp in Oświęcim, Poland. The site includes the main concentration camp at Auschwitz I and the remains of the concentration and e ...

informs that the human ashes and ground bones of those murdered there were often dumped into the river.Dr. Franciszek Piper
"The extermination procedure in the gas chambers"

(Państwowe Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkenau w Oświęcimiu), 1999-2010 Soła flows through or near the following settlements:

, Milówka, Cisiec,

Węgierska Górka Węgierska Górka (Literally Polish for "Hungarian Hill") is a village in Żywiec County, Silesian Voivodeship, in the historic province of Lesser Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Węgierska Górka. It lie ...

Cięcina Cięcina is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Węgierska Górka, within Żywiec County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately south-west of Żywiec and south of the regional capital Katowice. It is one ...

, Radziechowy,

Wieprz The Wieprz (, ; ) is a river in central-eastern Poland, and a tributary of the Vistula. It is the country's ninth longest river, with a total length of 349 km and a catchment area of 10,497 km2, all within Poland. Its course near the to ...

, Tresna, Czernichów,

Międzybrodzie Żywieckie Międzybrodzie Żywieckie is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Czernichów, within Żywiec County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately north of Czernichów, north of Żywiec, and south of the regi ...

, Międzybrodzie Bialskie, Porąbka,

Czaniec Czaniec is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Porąbka, within Bielsko County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately north-east of Porąbka, east of Bielsko-Biała, and south of the regional capital Kat ...

Kobiernice Kobiernice is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Porąbka, within Bielsko County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately north of Porąbka, east of Bielsko-Biała, and south of the regional capital Katow ...

, Nowa Wieś, Hecznarowice,

Bielany Bielany () is a district in Warsaw located in the north-western part of the city. Initially a part of Żoliborz, Bielany has been an independent district since 1994. Bielany borders Żoliborz to the south-east, and Bemowo to the south-west. Its ...

, Łęki, and

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sola Rivers of Poland Rivers of Silesian Voivodeship Rivers of Lesser Poland Voivodeship