DWINA, a name common to two important rivers of European Prussia.
(1.) The Northern Dwina, or Dvina Sievernaya, belongs to the basin of the White Sea, and is formed by the junction of the Sukhonaand the Yuk, which, rising the former in the south-east and the latter in the south-west of the government of Vologda, meet in the neighbourhood of Veliki Ustyug, at a height of 300 feet above the sea, in 60° 46' N. lat. and 46° 20' E. long. From its mouth, in the Gulf of Archangel, the distance to the confluence of the co-tributary streams is about 400 miles, and to the source of the Sukhona 750 miles. The drainage area is estimated at from 140,000 to 145,000 square miles. Except at the rapids the current of the Dwina is comparatively slow, as the average fall per mile is only 9 inches. Till its union with the Viuchegda, a river which exceeds it in volume, it flows for the most part in a single, well-defined, and permanent channel; but below that point it often breaks up into several branches, and not unfrequently alters its course. In the neighbourhood of Archangel it divides intc three distinct arms, which form a regular delta; but of these that of Berezoff alone is navigable for seafaring vessels, and even it is crossed by a bar at the mouth with not more than 14∣ or 15∣ feet of water at full tide. Above the confluence of the Viuchegda the breadth is about 1750 feet; below that point it widens out to 3500; and near Archangel it attains more than three times that measure. The river affords a valuable means of inland navigation. From Vologda to Archaugel the ordinary passage requires from 10 to 12 days, and the return journey from 6 to 8 weeks. The channel is free from ice for about 174 days in the year....
II. The Southern Dwina, or Dvina Zapadnaya, in German Düna, belongs to the Baltic basin, and takes its rise in a small lake about 800 feet above the level of the sea, in the government of Tver, not far from the sources of the Volga and the Dnieper. In its whole course of about 600 miles it waters the seven governments of Tver, Pskoff, Vitebsk, Mogileff, Vilna, Curland, and Livonia; and it is calculated that it drains an area of about 65,000 square miles. From Dünaburg to Riga, a distance of 204 miles, there is altogether a fall of 295 feet, of which 105 are in the 46∣ miles from Jakobstadt to Friedrichstadt. In the lower part of its course the river attains an ordinary depth of 30 feet, and an average breadth of 1400 feet; but during the spring flood it sometimes rises 14 feet above its usual level, and extends its waters for about a mile. The inundation lasts at Riga from two to ten days. Near the mouth the river is usually free from ice 245 days in the year, and in the government of Vitebsk for 229. It is navigable from the confluence of the Mezha downwards, but the number of rapids and shallows greatly diminishes its value. No fewer than 62 of the former are counted below Jakobstadt, and among these are some of the most dangerous of all. The passage to Riga from Velish usually takes thirteen days, from Disna seven, from Dünaburg four, from Friedrichstadt one. Navigation can also be carried on by the following tributaries of the Dw’ina—the Toropa, the Usviat, the Mezha and Obshei, the Kasplia, the Ulla, and the Bolder-aa. By Ptolemy and Marcian of Heraclea the river is mentioned as the Rhubon or Rhudon; at a later date it is called the Khezin or Turunt, and till the present day has the name of Polot among the White Russians. The modern designation is said to be due to the Schleswig and Bremen sailors, who were struck by the sandstone hills at the mouth of the river.
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