Gers (river)

Gers

Gers River in Auch
Country France
Basin
Main source Plateau de Lannemezan
River mouth Garonne
44°8′40″N 0°38′52″E / 44.14444°N 0.64778°E / 44.14444; 0.64778 (Garonne-Gers)Coordinates: 44°8′40″N 0°38′52″E / 44.14444°N 0.64778°E / 44.14444; 0.64778 (Garonne-Gers)
Progression GaronneAtlantic Ocean
Basin size 1,227 km2 (474 sq mi)
Physical characteristics
Length 175.4 km (109.0 mi)
Discharge
  • Average rate:
    7.06 m3/s (249 cu ft/s)

The Gers (French pronunciation: [ʒɛːʁ]) (Occitan: Gers) is a 178-kilometre (111 mi) long river in southern France, left tributary of the Garonne.

Its source is in the foothills of the Pyrenees, near Lannemezan. It flows north through the départements Hautes-Pyrénées, Gers and Lot-et-Garonne. It flows into the Garonne in Layrac, near Agen. The city Auch lies along the river Gers. It gives its name to the Gers département.

Toponymy

The name of the Gers appears in the sixth century as Ægirtius, de Egircio flumine and Gircius. It is known as in flumine Gersio in 817 and as Iercius in the 13th century.

Departments and cities

The Gers river in Ornézan

The Gers passes through the following departments and main towns:

References


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 5/21/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.