Spree

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Spree/Sprjewja/Spréva
The Spree in Berlin, view eastwards from Friedrichstraße.
Origin	Upper Lusatia
Mouth	Havel 52°32′10″N 13°12′31″E / 52.53611°N 13.20861°E / 52.53611; 13.20861Coordinates: 52°32′10″N 13°12′31″E / 52.53611°N 13.20861°E / 52.53611; 13.20861
Basin countries	Czech Republic, Germany
Length	±400 km
Avg. discharge	36 m³/s
Basin area	10,105 km²

The Spree (German pronunciation: [ʃpʁeː]; Upper Sorbian: Sprjewja, Lower Sorbian: Sprowja, Czech: Spréva) is a river in Saxony, Brandenburg and Berlin, Germany and in Ústí nad Labem Region, Czech Republic. It is a left tributary of the Havel river and is approximately 400 kilometres (250 mi) in length.

Its source is located in the Lusatian Hills (Lausitzer Bergland) on the Czech border. After leaving the hills, the river crosses the old city of Bautzen/Budyšin, the centre of the Sorbs in Upper Lusatia. Further north the river enters the Spreewald, a large wetlands area, which belongs to Lower Lusatia. In its final portion the river runs through the city centre of Berlin to join the River Havel in Spandau, a western quarter of Berlin.

The name of the river Spree was by Thietmar of Merseburg recorded as Sprewa (Middle German sprejen, sprewen, High German sprühen meaning to spray water). People living at the Spree river (Anwohner) were in old German language (and are still) called Spreewaner.

Residents and tourists commonly attend events at Badeschiff, a pool placed within the Spree in Berlin.

Towns on the river's course include: Bautzen, Spremberg, Cottbus, Lübbenau, Lübben, Fürstenwalde and Berlin.

The river gave its name to several German districts:

• Spree-Neiße
• Oder-Spree

Views of the Spree in central Berlin

The Spree in Berlin's eastern harbour.	Showing the Palace of the Republic and the Berliner Dom	Near Museum Island
		River Spree in Berlin-Treptow, downstream view	Map of Germany, highlighting Spree

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Spree

• Berlin Referendum Animation - Short article on the Mediaspree referendum
• Panorama Spree - Panoramic view of the river in Berlin