Drava or Drave, Ger. Drau, Hung. Dráva, river, c.450 mi (720 km) long, rising in the Carnic Alps, N Italy. It flows generally E through S Austria (where it is called the Drau) and enters Slovenia. It forms part of the Croatian-Hungarian border before joining the Danube River E of Osijek. The Mur River is its chief tributary. The lower course of the Drava is navigable.

Drava or Drave (German: Drau; Italian, Croatian, and Slovene: Drava; Hungarian: Dráva) is a river in southern Central Europe, a tributary of the Danube. It begins in Dobbiaco (Italy) and flows east through East Tirol and Carinthia in Austria, into Slovenia (145 km), and then southeast, passing through Croatia and forming most of the border between Croatia and Hungary, before it joins the Danube near Osijek.

The Drava flows through San Candido/Innichen in Italy, Lienz, Spittal an der Drau, Villach, Dieschitz and Ferlach in Austria, Dravograd, Vuzenica, Muta, Ruše, Maribor, Ptuj, and Ormož in Slovenia, Varaždin and Osijek in Croatia, and Barcs in Hungary. The Drava is navigable for about 90 km from Čađavica in Croatia to its outfall.

The main tributaries of the Drava are: the Gail in Austria, the Meža and Dravinja in Slovenia, and the Bednja in Croatia from the right; the Gurk and the Lavant in Austria, and the Mura (near Legrad) in Croatia from the left.

In the ancient times the river was called Dravus. The name is most likely Celtic or pre-Celtic in origin (see Old European hydronymy).

External links

• MSN Encarta - World Atlas - Map of Drava (river), Europe
• DrauDrava - old river and new sounds