View source for Mur (river)

{{Short description|River in Central Europe}}
{{Redirect|Mura River|the rivers in Russia|Mura (disambiguation){{!}}Mura}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2010}}
{{Infobox river
| name              = Mur/Mura
| image             = Murtal Tamsweg 20132.jpg
| image_caption     = The Mur Valley near Tamsweg in Austria
| mapframe          = yes
| mapframe-zoom     = 6
| source1_location  = [[Hohe Tauern]] at [[Muhr]], [[Austria]]
| source1_coordinates= {{coord|47|7|48|N|13|20|49|E|type:river_region:AT|display=inline}}
| mouth_location    = [[Drava]] near [[Legrad]], [[Croatia]]
| mouth_coordinates = {{coord|46|18|19|N|16|52|39|E|region:AT|display=inline,title}}
| progression       = {{RDrava}}
| subdivision_type1 = Countries
| subdivision_name1 = {{hlist|[[Austria]]|[[Slovenia]]|[[Croatia]]|[[Hungary]]}}
| length            = {{convert|463.7|km|abbr=on}} {{GeoQuelle|AT-6|DAS}}
| source1_elevation = {{convert|1898|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| mouth_elevation   = {{convert|130|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| discharge1_avg    = {{convert|166|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}
| basin_size        = {{convert|14109|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}
}}

[[File:Murursprung01.JPG|thumb|upright|Mur source (''Murursprung'') in the [[Ankogel Group]] of the [[High Tauern]]]]
[[File:Frohnleiten_vom_Gschwendberg.jpg|thumb|The Mur passing through [[Frohnleiten]], from left to right in the middle the expressway S35 {{ill|Brucker Schnellstraße|de}} (regarding southwest and downwards from the Gschwendtberg mountain)]]
[[File:Graz vista desde el Schlossberg.jpg|thumb|The Mur in [[Graz]], view from [[Schlossberg (Graz)|Schlossberg]] (Southwest direction)]]
[[File:Mura-slovenija-f-2012-07-PV.JPG|thumb|right|The Mur in Slovenia]]
[[File:ZusammenflussDrauMur.jpg|thumb|right|The confluence of the Drava (foreground) and Mura near [[Legrad]], Croatia]]

The '''Mur''' ({{IPA|de|ˈmuːɐ̯|-|De-Mur.ogg|lang}}) or '''Mura''' ({{IPA|sl|ˈmúːɾa|lang}}; {{IPA|hr|mǔːra|lang}}; {{IPA|hu|ˈmurɒ|lang}}; [[Prekmurje Slovene]]: ''Müra''<ref name="Novak">Novak, Vilko. 2006. ''Slovar stare knjižne prekmurščine''. Ljubljana: ZRC SAZU, pp. 262, 269.</ref> or ''Möra''<ref name="Novak"/>) is a [[river]] in [[Central Europe]] rising in the [[Hohe Tauern]] national park of the [[Central Eastern Alps]] in [[Austria]] with its source at {{convert|1898|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level. It is a tributary of the [[Drava]] and subsequently the [[Danube]].

The Mur's total length is around {{convert|464|km}}.{{GeoQuelle|AT-6|DAS}} About 326&nbsp;km are within the interior of [[Austria]]; 95&nbsp;km flow in and around [[Slovenia]] (67&nbsp;km along the borders with Austria and Croatia, 28&nbsp;km inside Slovenia),{{GeoQuelle|SI|SURS}} and the rest forms the border between [[Croatia]] and [[Hungary]]. The largest city on the river is [[Graz]], Austria. Its [[drainage basin]] covers an area of {{convert|14109|km2|mi2|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://info.bmlrt.gv.at/dam/jcr:75d8f27a-46eb-42f6-b517-bb2812dff44c/FlVerz_Mur_2011.pdf|title=Flächenverzeichnis der Flussgebiete: Murgebiet|work=Beiträge zur Hydrografie Österreichs Heft 60|page=126|date=October 2011}}</ref>

[[Tributary|Tributaries]] of the Mur include the [[Mürz]], the [[Sulm (Austria)|Sulm]], the [[Ščavnica]], the [[Ledava]] and the [[Trnava (Međimurje)|Trnava]].

==Etymology==
The river was attested as ''Maura'' in AD 799, ''Muora'' in 890, ''Mura'' in 1259, ''Mvr'' and ''Mver'' in 1310, and ''Muer'' in 1354. The name is probably of Slavic origin, nominalized from the adjective *''murъ'' 'dark', meaning 'dark water'.<ref name="Snoj">{{cite book |last1=Snoj |first1=Marko |title=Etimološki slovar slovenskih zemljepisnih imen |date=2009 |publisher=Modrijan |location=Ljubljana |pages=274–275}}</ref>

==River course==
The river rises in a remote valley within the [[Tamsweg District|Lungau region]] of the [[Austria]]n [[Salzburg (state)|state of Salzburg]]. The river flows eastwards through [[Tamsweg]] before crossing the border into the [[Styria|state of Styria]].

Between Tamsweg and [[Unzmarkt-Frauenburg]] the river flows through a rural mountain valley and is closely paralleled by the {{convert|65|km|abbr=on}} long narrow gauge [[Murtalbahn]] railway. From Unzmarkt the river continues in an easterly direction through the industrial towns of [[Leoben]] and [[Bruck an der Mur]]. At Bruck an der Mur the [[Mürz]] joins the Mur, which turns sharply south to flow through the city of [[Graz]].

The river flows through the centre of Graz, passing underneath the [[Schloßberg (Graz)|Schloßberg]] and by the historic [[Innere Stadt (Graz)|Inner City]]. As a result of being the [[European Capital of Culture]] for 2003, an artificial island known as the [[Murinsel]] was constructed in the middle of the river. Once heavily polluted by several [[paper mill]]s on the shore and by the [[ironworks]] around Leoben, the [[water quality]] has improved since the 1980s and the river is now seen as an asset to the city.

From Graz the river continues to flow south, past the town of [[Leibnitz]] to its nearby confluence with the [[Sulm (Austria)|Sulm]], where it adopts a more easterly course. Near [[Spielfeld]], the river forms the border between Austria and [[Slovenia]], a role it retains until just after the twin towns of [[Bad Radkersburg]] and [[Gornja Radgona]], where it passes fully into Slovenia.

In Slovenia it passes the towns of [[Radenci]], and [[Veržej]]. The river gives its name to the Slovenian region of [[Prekmurje]] (literally 'across the Mur') and the Croatian region of [[Međimurje]] (literally 'between the Mur'). [[Cable ferry|Cable ferries]] and [[ship mill]]s are still found in this area.

In the upper Međimurje area, in the western part of the region, the Mur floods and changes its course rather often, moving slowly toward the north on its left. Here, the biggest forest along the river, the [[Murščak (forest)|Murščak]], is located between [[Domašinec]] and [[Donji Hrašćan]] (derived from [[Croatian language|Croatian]] ''hrast'' '[[oak]]'). After receiving its last significant tributary [[Trnava (Međimurje)|Trnava]], the river ends near [[Legrad]] in [[Koprivnica-Križevci county]], [[Croatia]], and [[Murakeresztúr]], [[Zala County|Zala county]], [[Hungary]], on border where it flows into the river [[Drava]].

==Exploitation==
{{More citations needed section|date=October 2014}}
Since the 4th century BC, there have been reports of [[floating mill]]s powered by the streams of the river. The [[ancient]] technology was adopted later by arriving [[Slavs]] and then by [[Magyars]]. Several decades ago, in the 1920s and 1930s, many of these mills were still operating along the river. At least one of the old mills, the Babič Mill ({{langx|sl|Babičev mlin}}) near [[Veržej]], Slovenia, continues to operate to this day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slovenia.si/culture/tradition/milling-as-remembrance-of-times-past-in-prekmurje/|title=Milling as Remembrance of Times Past in Prekmurje|work=slovenia.si|date=May 2008|access-date=26 March 2015}}</ref>

The Mur is known to carry small quantities of [[gold]], not enough to be suitable for exploitation today, but this was a focus of activity for many people since ancient times. Organized [[research]] and exploitation of gold and other local resources was encouraged for the first time in 1772.

In Austria, several [[hydroelectric dam]]s have been constructed for the production of [[electricity]].

In 2017, a hydroelectric dam was under construction in Puntigam, a few km south of the Graz city centre. The plan includes a massive sewage pipe between the city centre and the new dam, necessitating the felling of thousands of trees. The project is controversial and environmental groups are resisting it. Both environmental impact and economic studies have found the project to be neither ecologically nor economically viable.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rettetdiemur.at/|title=Rettet die Mur - Start|website=www.rettetdiemur.at}}</ref> Additional hydroelectric plants are planned for Slovenia.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.amazon-of-europe.com/en/mura-news/|title=News|first=W. W. F.|last=Austria|website=Amazon of Europe|date=28 March 2022 }}</ref>

==Monitoring==
The hydrological parameters of the Mur are regularly monitored in Croatia at [[Mursko Središće]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://hidro.hr/hidro_e.php?id=hidro&param=Podaci_e | title = Daily hydrological report | publisher = [[State Hydrometeorological Bureau of the Republic of Croatia]] | access-date = 2010-09-09}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{commons category-inline|Mur River|Mur}}
* Condition of Mur at [https://web.archive.org/web/20130604192717/http://www.arso.gov.si/vode/podatki/amp/H00_g_30.html Gornja Radgona] and [https://web.archive.org/web/20130604182749/http://www.arso.gov.si/vode/podatki/amp/H40_g_30.html Petanjci] - graphs, in the following order, of water level, flow and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken by [[Slovenian Environment Agency|ARSO]])

<BR>
{{Hydrography of Slovenia}}
{{Hydrography of Croatia}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Mur (river)| ]]
[[Category:Mur basin| ]]
[[Category:Rivers of Salzburg (federal state)]]
[[Category:Rivers of Styria]]
[[Category:Rivers of Prekmurje]]
[[Category:Rivers of Styria (Slovenia)]]
[[Category:Rivers of Hungary]]
[[Category:Rivers of Croatia]]
[[Category:International rivers of Europe]]
[[Category:Croatia–Hungary border]]
[[Category:Austria–Slovenia border]]
[[Category:Croatia–Slovenia border]]
[[Category:Natura 2000 in Slovenia]]
[[Category:Rivers of Austria]]
[[Category:Border rivers]]