Vilnia

The Vilnia (also Vilnelė; Belarusian: Вільня, Vilnia [ˈvʲilʲnʲa]; Polish: Wilejka, Wilenka) is a river in Belarus and Lithuania. Its source is near the villages of Kiemėnai [lt] and Vindžiūnai [lt], 6 km south of Šumskas, nearby to the A3–M7 Medininkai–Kamenny Log border crossing complexes of the Belarus–Lithuania border.^[1]

Not to be confused with the river Neris/Vilija. For the city, named after it, see Vilnius.

Vilnia
Vilnia River in Vilnius
Location
Country	Lithuania, Belarus
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	5 km (3.1 mi) south of Šumskas
Mouth	Neris
• coordinates	54.6889°N 25.2926°E / 54.6889; 25.2926
Length	79.6 km (49.5 mi)
Basin size	623.5 km2 (240.7 sq mi)
Discharge
• average	5.63 m3/s (199 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Progression	Neris→ Neman→ Baltic Sea

Geography

The Vilnia is 79.6 km long^[2] and its basin covers 624 sq. km. The river's steepness is 124.6 metres from the source to the mouth.^[3] For 13 km, its flow marks the Belarus-Lithuania border, and the remaining 69 km are in Lithuania where it flows into the Neris River at Vilnius. Eventually, its waters, via the Neris draining into the Neman River, reach the Baltic Sea. Its confluence with the Neris lies within the city of Vilnius, and the river's name is regarded to have been the source of the city's name.^[4]

Sources

The springs along the Vilnia's length contribute to its flow.^[5] Locals refer to the river's starting source as the Holy Stream.^[1] A series of wells accessing the river's groundwaters, drilled in the early 20th century, remained a major source of potable water for the city into the late 20th century.^[6]

Aerial view of Vilnia, bending around Užupis district.

Naming

The name of the river derives from the Lithuanian language word vilnis ("a surge") or vilnyti ("to surge"). Beneath it stands the Indo-European root wel-/wl- meaning "to roll", "to spin".^[1] Vilnelė, the diminutive form of the original hydronym Vilnia, came into popular use in Lithuanian and in Soviet times largely replaced the latter because of Polish language influence — Poles translated Lithuanian name of the river with such diminutive form (Wilenka).

Fauna

Within the river basin, approximately 30 living species of fish and birds have protected status.^[3] In an effort to restore the upstream migration of salmonids in the basin, a fish ladder was constructed on the Vilnia in 2000.^[2]

References

1. "Paslaptingos Vilnelės ištakos" (in Lithuanian). 9 November 2016.
2. "IMPACT OF SMALL HYDRO-POWER PLANTS ON SALMONID FISHES SPAWNING MIGRATIONS". Vilnius University Institute of Ecology. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
3. Česėkaitė, Ditė (2022-10-02). "Ar viską žinome apie Vilnelę?". Alkas (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 2024-04-11.
4. Marcel Cornis-Pope, John Neubauer (2004). History of the literary cultures of East-Central Europe: junctures and disjunctures in the 19th and 20th centuries. John Benjamins Publishing. p. 15. ISBN 978-90-272-3453-7.
5. Cetkauskaite, Anolda; Zarkov, Dmitry; Stoskus, Liutauras (2001). "Water-Quality Control, Monitoring and Wastewater Treatment in Lithuania 1950 to 1999". Ambio: A Journal of the Human Environment. 30 (4): 297–305. doi:10.1579/0044-7447-30.4.297. PMID 11697266. S2CID 43418528. Retrieved 2010-02-24.
6. "Changes in groundwater supply and consumption in Vilnius in the twentieth century" (PDF). University of Helsinki. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-11. Retrieved 2010-02-24.