Dwina

Dwina, or Duna, the name of two Russian rivers. 1. The Western Dwina rises in a marshy forest in the district of Ostrakhof, 15 miles W. of the source of the Volga, and flows circuitously S.W. to the town of Vitebsk, when it flows N.W. and separates Vitebsk and Livonia from Minsk and Courland, and after a course of 500 miles falls into the Gulf of Riga 10 miles below the town. It is navigable for some distance during spring, but the stream is impeded by rapids. It receives several tributaries, and is liable to inundation. Fish are plentiful. 2. The Northern Dwina is formed in the government of Vologda by the union of two smaller streams, and flows N., and after a course of 400 miles falls into the White Sea, 30 miles below Archangel, by several mouths, forming an island delta. By a system of canals it is the means ol uniting the White, Black, Baltic, and Caspian Seas.