Eider (river)

Eider
The Eider at Breiholz
The Eider as the borderline between the Danes, Saxons and Frisians
Location
Country	Germany
State	Schleswig-Holstein
Cities	Bordesholm Kiel Rendsburg Friedrichstadt Tönning
Physical characteristics
Source	Klaster Teich
• location	Wattenbek
• coordinates	54°8′18″N 10°7′38″E / 54.13833°N 10.12722°E / 54.13833; 10.12722
Mouth	North Sea
• location	Tönning
• coordinates	54°18′52.27″N 8°57′16.34″E / 54.3145194°N 8.9545389°E / 54.3145194; 8.9545389
Length	188 km (117 mi)
Discharge
• average	6.5 m3/s (230 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Tielenau, Broklandsau, Süderau
• right	Treene, Sorge

The Eider (German: Eider; Danish: Ejderen; Latin: Egdor or Eidora^[1]) is the longest river in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. The river starts near Bordesholm and reaches the southwestern outskirts of Kiel on the shores of the Baltic Sea, but flows to the west, ending in the North Sea. The lower part of the Eider was used as part of the Eider Canal until that canal was replaced by the modern Kiel Canal.^[2]

In the Early Middle Ages the river is believed to have been the border between the related Germanic tribes, the Jutes and the Angles, who along with the neighboring Saxons crossed the North Sea from this region during this period and settled in England. During the High Middle Ages the Eider was the border between the Saxons and the Danes, as reported by Adam of Bremen in 1076. For centuries it divided Denmark and the Holy Roman Empire.^[3] Today it is the border between Schleswig, Holstein and Eiderland, the northern and southern parts, respectively, of the modern German state of Schleswig-Holstein.

The Eider flows through the following towns: Bordesholm, Kiel, Rendsburg, Friedrichstadt and Tönning. Near Tönning it flows into the North Sea. The estuary has tidal flats and brackish water. The mouth of the river is crossed by a closeable storm surge barrier, the Eider Barrage.