| Llobregat | |
|---|---|
 View of the Llobregat River inOlesa de Montserrat | |
 Llobregat Watershed (Interactive map) | |
| Location | |
| Country | Spain |
| Province | Barcelona |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Serra del Cadí |
| • elevation | 1,259 m (4,131 ft) |
| Mouth | |
• location | Mediterranean Sea |
• coordinates | 41°17′53″N2°08′17″E / 41.29806°N 2.13806°E /41.29806; 2.13806 |
• elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Length | 170 km (110 mi) |
| Basin size | 4,900 km2 (1,900 sq mi) |
| Discharge | |
| • average | 20.77 m3/s (733 cu ft/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Riera de Merlès,Riera Gavarresa,Riera de Rubí,Riera de Vallvidrera |
| • right | Bastareny,Cardener,Anoia |
TheLlobregat (Catalan pronunciation:[ʎuβɾəˈɣat]) is the second longestriver inCatalonia,Spain, after theTer. It flows into the Mediterranean south of the city ofBarcelona. Its name could have originated in an ancientLatin word[which?] meaning 'dark', 'muddy' or 'slippery',[1] or simply from its ancient nameRubricatus, literally 'red'.[2]
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The Llobregat originates at an elevation of 1,259 metres (4,131 ft) in theSerra del Cadí, within the limits ofCastellar de n'Hug municipality,Berguedàcomarca. The total length of the river is over 170 kilometres (110 mi).AtMartorell, theRomanVia Augusta crosses the river on theDevil's Bridge, which dates from theHigh Middle Ages in its current form. TheC-16 highway is also known as the 'Llobregat Axis' (Catalan:Eix del Llobregat) for its largest stretch follows the valley of the Llobregat.
The river ends in theMediterranean Sea forming theLlobregat Delta, in the municipality ofEl Prat de Llobregat, nearBarcelona on the left bank. The delta provided a large extension of fertile land close to the city of Barcelona, but is now largely paved, urbanized and covered by infrastructure such as theBarcelona–El Prat international Airport.[3]
The Llobregat is heavily managed in its lower course and water that was previously lost to the sea is now pumped upstream to increase the natural flow, recharge theriver deltawetlands and controlseawater incursion.
The maintributaries of the Llobregat are:
Media related toLlobregat at Wikimedia Commons
