The Glan is a river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 in southwestern Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, right tributary of the Nahe River. It is approximately 68 kilometres (42.3 mi) long. It rises in the Saarland

Saarland

Saarland is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The capital is Saarbrücken. It has an area of 2570 km² and 1,045,000 inhabitants. In both area and population, it is the smallest state in Germany other than the city-states...

, northwest of Homburg

Homburg, Saarland

Homburg is a town in Saarland, Germany, the administrative seat of the Saarpfalz district. With a population of c. 44,000 inhabitants, is the third city in its federal state. The medical department of the University of Saarland is situated here. The city is also home to the Karlsberg beer brewery...

. It flows generally north, through Rhineland-Palatinate

Rhineland-Palatinate

Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....

, and empties into the Nahe in Odernheim am Glan

Odernheim am Glan

Odernheim am Glan is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany. It is a village of 1,900 people. The physical setting of Odernheim is quite picturesque. It is situated on the river Glan amid rolling hills and vineyards. Nearby towns include...

, near Bad Sobernheim

Bad Sobernheim

Bad Sobernheim is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Nahe, approx. 20 km south-west of Bad Kreuznach....

. Other towns along the Glan are Altenglan

Altenglan

Altenglan is a municipality in the district of Kusel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Glan, approx. 5 km north-east of Kusel, and 25 km north-west of Kaiserslautern....

, Glan-Münchweiler

Glan-Münchweiler

Glan-Münchweiler is a municipality in the district of Kusel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Glan, approx. 8 km south-east of Kusel, and 25 km west of Kaiserslautern....

, Lauterecken

Lauterecken

Lauterecken is a municipality in the district of Kusel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the rivers Glan and Lauter, approx. 20 km north-east of Kusel, and 25 km north-west of Kaiserslautern....

 and Meisenheim

Meisenheim

Meisenheim is a town in the district of Bad Kreuznach, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Glan, approx. 25 km south-west of Bad Kreuznach.Meisenheim is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde Meisenheim....

.

Etymology

The Celtic root of the name comes either from glann (shining) or from glen

Glen

A glen is a valley, typically one that is long, deep, and often glacially U-shaped; or one with a watercourse running through such a valley. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower than a strath."...

(U-shaped valley).