The River Annan 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 southwest Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. It rises at the foot of Hart Fell, five miles north of Moffat

Moffat

Moffat is a former burgh and spa town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, lying on the River Annan, with a population of around 2,500. The most notable building in the town is the Moffat House Hotel, designed by John Adam...

. A second fork rises on Annanhead Hill and flows through the Devil's Beef Tub

Devil's Beef Tub

The Devil's Beef Tub is a deep, dramatic hollow in the hills north of the Scottish town of Moffat. The 500-foot deep hollow is formed by four hills, Great Hill , Peat Knowe, Annanhead Hill, and Ericstane Hill. It is one of the two main sources of the River Annan; the other is from the...

 before joining at the Hart Fell fork north of Moffat.

From there it flows past the town of Lockerbie

Lockerbie

Lockerbie is a town in the Dumfries and Galloway region of south-western Scotland. It lies approximately from Glasgow, and from the English border. It had a population of 4,009 at the 2001 census...

, and to the sea in the fishing town of Annan

Annan, Dumfries and Galloway

The royal burgh of Annan is a well-built town, red sandstone being the material mainly used. Each year in July, Annan celebrates the Royal Charter and the boundaries of the Royal Burgh are confirmed when a mounted cavalcade undertakes the Riding of the Marches. Entertainment includes a...

. It is one of the region's foremost fishing rivers, despite being used for many years by Chapelcross nuclear power station

Chapelcross nuclear power station

Chapelcross was a Magnox nuclear power plant located near the town of Annan in Dumfries and Galloway in south west Scotland. It was the sister plant to Calder Hall in Cumbria, England, both commissioned and originally operated by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority.The primary purpose of...

 which extracted water for cooling purposes, but in any case is now being decommissioned. The main fish found - and hence the target of anglers - are salmon and sea trout, brown trout, grayling and chub, with a few others such as pike.

The valley (Annandale) is fertile and farming is the major landuse. It is a beautiful unspoilt part of the UK.

Etymology

The etymology of the River Annan is unknown, although some sources suggest it may mean simply "water

Water

Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...

", from a Celtic language

Celtic languages

The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...

.

Fishing

To fish on the Annan one needs permission from the owner, but one does not need an EA rod licence (England only). The salmon and sea trout season runs from 25 February to 15 November. Salmon are at their best in the Autumn, while sea trout are normally summer running. The Brown trout season ends earlier but chub and grayling can be caught all year.

Popular culture

The Annan makes several appearances in folk songs from the Borders, and in most appears as a malevolent force, drowning those who try to cross it.
One of the most well recorded is 'Annan Waters' (Child 265) in which the Annan Waters allows the protagonist passage upon the promise that he may have the hero's "precious bones on my return." Versions of this song have been recorded by artists including Nic Jones

Nic Jones

Nicolas Paul "Nic" Jones is an English folk singer, fingerstyle guitarist and fiddle player whose professional career spanned the years 1964-1982. He recorded five solo albums, and was a frequent guest performer.-Biography:...

, Kate Rusby

Kate Rusby

Kate Anna Rusby is an English folk singer and songwriter from Penistone, South Yorkshire. Sometimes known as The Barnsley Nightingale, she has headlined various British national folk festivals, and is regarded as one of the most famous English folk singers of contemporary times...

 and the The Decemberists

The Decemberists

The Decemberists are an indie folk rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States, fronted by singer/songwriter Colin Meloy. The other members of the band are Chris Funk , Jenny Conlee , Nate Query , and John Moen .The band's...

In online comic Gunnerkrigg Court

Gunnerkrigg Court

Gunnerkrigg Court is a science-fantasy webcomic created by Tom Siddell and launched in April 2005. It is updated online three days a week, and the first volume of the comic was published in print format by Archaia Studios Press and Titan Books...

, the Annan Waters are a river separating the Court from the Gillitie Forest, and mark the separation between technology/science and magic/nature.