| Smědá | |
| Source1 Location: | Hejnice, Jizera Mountains |
| Mouth Location: | Lusatian Neisse |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 51.05°N 14.9644°W |
| Subdivision Type1: | Countries |
| Subdivision Type2: | Regions/ Voivodeships |
| Length Km: | 55.3 |
| Discharge1 Avg: | 4.21m3/s near the Czech-Polish border |
| Basin Size Km2: | 331 |
The Smědá (pronounced as /cs/; pl|Witka, de|Wittig) is a river in the Czech Republic and Poland, a right tributary of the Lusatian Neisse River. It flows through the Liberec Region in the Czech Republic and then through Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Together with the Bílá Smědá, which is its main source, the Smědá is 55.3km (34.4miles) long. Without the Bílá Smědá, it is 51.9km (32.2miles) long.
The initial name of the river was Wietev, derived from the Slavic word for 'branch' (in modern Czech větev). The oldest mention of Wietev is from 1539. The German name Wittig was derived from this name.[1] In 1951, the German name was replaced by Witka in Poland.[2] The modern Czech name Smědá ('dark' in old Czech) is derived from the dark water which flows out of the peat bogs.[3]
The Smědá originates as Bílá Smědá in peat pogs in the territory of Hejnice in the Jizera Mountains at an elevation of exactly . After it merges with the stream Černá Smědá (and from a broader point of view with the Hnědá Smědá, which joins the Černá Smědá) and further continues as Smědá. It flows to Radomierzyce, where it enters the Lusatian Neisse River at an elevation of . Its total length is 55.3km (34.4miles). Without the Bílá Smědá, the Smědá is 51.9km (32.2miles) long,[4] of which 47.8km (29.7miles) (including the Czech-Polish border) is in the Czech Republic.[5] About 2.7km (01.7miles) forms the Czech-Polish state border. The drainage basin has an area of 331km2,[4] of which 251.3km2[5] is in the Czech Republic.
The sources and longest tributaries of the Smědá are:[6]
| Tributary | Length (km) | Side | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Řasnice | 18.3 | right | |
| Lomnice | 17.0 | right | |
| Bulovský potok | 15.4 | right | |
| Sloupský potok | 9.8 | left | |
| Bílá Smědá | 3.4 | – | |
| Černá Smědá | 2.5 | right |
The river flows through the territories of Hejnice, Bílý Potok, Raspenava, Frýdlant, Kunratice, Višňová and Černousy in the Czech Republic and Zawidów, Gmina Sulików and Gmina Zgorzelec in Poland.
In Poland, the Niedów Reservoir (also called Witka Reservoir) is constructed on the Smědá. It was built in 1958–1962 and is used as a recreational area. In 2010, the dam burst due to flash floods. The new dam was built in 2016.[7]
Fish living in the river include river trout and brook trout.[4]
The final section of the river within the limits of the Czech Republic is protected as the Meandry Smědé ('Smědá meanders') Nature Reserve. It has an area of . The object of protection is the natural character of the river bed with meanders, pools and wet meadows, with a large number of protected plant and animal species.[8]