Guadalquivir

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Guadalquivir river in Córdoba
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Guadalquivir river in Córdoba

The Guadalquivir is the second longest river in Spain. The name comes from the Arabic word Wadi al-Kebir, the big river. The river was called Betis from Pre-Roman times to the Al-Andalus period.

It has a length of 666 kilometers and drains an area of about 58,000 square kilometers. It begins at Sierra de Cazorla, passes through Córdoba and Seville and ends in the village of Bonanza, near the town of Sanlucar de Barrameda, flowing into the Gulf of Cadiz (Atlantic Ocean). The marshy lowlands at the river's end are known as "Las Marismas". It borders Doñana National Park reserve.

The Guadalquivir river is the only navigable river in Spain. Currently it is navigable until the city of Seville, but in times of the Ancient Rome it was navigable until the city of Córdoba.

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