Somme River

Somme
The Somme
Course in Northern France
Location
Country	France
Region	Picardy
Physical characteristics
Source
- location	Fonsommes
- coordinates	49°54′23″N 03°24′11″E
- elevation	85 m (279 ft)
Mouth
- location	Saint-Valery-sur-Somme English Channel
- coordinates	50°11′10″N 01°38′35″E
Length	245 km (152 mi)
Basin size	6,550 km^2 (2,530 sq mi)
Discharge
- location	Abbeville
- average	35 m^3/s (1,200 cu ft/s)

The Somme is a river in the north of France, in the Hauts-de-France region, and gives its name to the department called Somme.

The name of the river is of Celtic origins, and refers to the tranquility of the river over much of its course. The river is known for the Battle of the Somme, which was an important battle of the First World War.

Geography

The Somme river has a length of 245 km (152.2 mi),^[1] and a drainage basin with an area of 6,550 km² (2,529 sq mi).

Course

Source of the Somme in Fonsomme

The source of the Somme is in the Fonsomme commune (Aisne), at an altitude of about 86 m (282 ft).^[2]

The Somme passes through the departments and cities of:

• Aisne : Fonsomme, Saint-Quentin
• Somme : Ham, Péronne, Corbie, Amiens, Abbeville, Saint-Valery-sur-Somme

The Somme river flows through 49 communes.^[3]

Finally, it flows into the English Channel near Saint-Valery-sur-Somme.^[4]

Main tributaries

• Left tributaries
  • Avre - 66.2 km;^[5]
  • Selle - 38.9 km;^[6]
  • Saint-Landon - 13.2 km;^[7]
  • Airaines - 12.8 km;^[8]
• Right tributaries
  • Omignon - 32 km;^[9]
  • Cologne - 23.2 km;^[10]
  • Tortille - 16.1 km;^[11]
  • Ancre - 37.4 km;^[12]
  • Hallue - 15.8 km;^[13]
  • Nièvre - 22 km;^[14]
  • Scardon - 12.4 km;^[15]

Archaeology

Different archeological finds have been discovered in its valley: The Acheulean culture is named after Saint-Acheul, a suburb of Amiens. Hand axes from the Palaeolithic period were found there, and gave this name to the respective period.

Related pages

• List of rivers of France

References

1. "Eaux superficielles et souterraines" (in French). AMEVA.org. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
2. "Source de la Somme" (in French). Géoportail. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
3. "La Somme Rivière (E6---140)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
4. "Confluence de la Somme" (in French). Géoportail. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
5. "Avre (E6400600)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
6. "Selle ou Somme (E6420600)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
7. "Rivière du Saint-Landon (E6450600)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
8. "Rivière d'Airaines (E6450800)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
9. "Omignon (E6350750)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
10. "Cologne (E6350850)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
11. "Tortille (E6350900)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
12. "Ancre (E6380600)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
13. "Rivière d'Hallue (E6390700)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
14. "Nièvre (E6450650)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
15. "Scardon (E6480600)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.

Other websites

• Banque Hydro - MEDDE, «Synthèse de la Banque Hydro» Archived 2022-01-07 at the Wayback Machine (in French)