GUADALQUIVIR

The 'Guadalquivir' is the fourth longest river in Spain (after the Tagus, Ebro and Douro), and the longest in Andalusia. The name comes from the Arabic ''al-wādi al-kabīr'' (الوادي الكبير), 'The Great River'. The river was called ''Betis'' (or ''Baetis'') from Pre-Roman times to the Al-Andalus period, giving its name to the Hispania Baetica Roman province.
The Guadalquivir is 657 kilometers long and drains an area of about 58,000 square kilometers. It begins at Cañada de las Fuentes in the Cazorla mountain range (Jaén), passes through Córdoba and Seville and ends at the fishing village of Bonanza, in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, flowing into the Gulf of Cádiz, in the Atlantic Ocean. The marshy lowlands at the river's end are known as "Las Marismas". It borders Doñana National Park reserve.
The Guadalquivir river is the only great navigable river in Spain. Currently it is navigable up as far as Seville, but in Roman times it was navigable to Córdoba.
The ancient city of Tartessos was said to be have been located at the mouth of the Guadalquivir, although its site has not yet been found.

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★ More information from the United Nations Environmental Program.