One of Europe's major rivers, flowing through the heart of Ukraine past Kyiv.
Length
2,200 km
Source
Valdai Hills, Russia
Mouth
Black Sea
Continent
Europe
Countries
Russia, Belarus & Ukraine
Did you know?
Medieval Kyiv grew rich on the Dnieper as part of the great trade route 'from the Varangians to the Greeks'.
Little-known fact
The river divides Ukraine into a 'Left Bank' and 'Right Bank', terms still used in everyday life today.
Highlights
- Major river of Ukraine
- Ancient Viking trade route
- Divides Ukraine's Left and Right Banks
Life in the Dnieper
The fish and animals, waterbirds and water plants — including some of the rarest — that this water supports.
Animals & fish
Beluga sturgeon
A giant armoured fish that can live over 100 years and yields the world’s most prized caviar.
Wels catfish
A monstrous European catfish that can top 2.5 m and has learned to beach itself to catch pigeons.
Eurasian otter
A sleek, playful hunter whose return to a river is a sign the water has run clean again.
Waterbirds
Common kingfisher
A dazzling blue-and-orange dart that plunges from a perch to spear fish in an instant.
Water plants & reeds
Common reed
The tall, feathery grass that forms the vast reedbeds fringing rivers and lakes, sheltering countless birds.
Interactive · 3D journey
Journey of a river · source → sea
Every river runs the same great journey — from an icy mountain spring, down through gorges and looping meanders, to a wide delta where it meets the sea. Tap a stage to follow the water downstream.
Tip: hover to tilt the valley · tap a stage to float downstream
The Source
Every river begins high up — in a mountain spring, a melting glacier or a boggy upland. The water is cold, clear and fast, tumbling down the steepest ground of its whole journey.
Landforms here