Žitný ostrov, also called Veľký Žitný ostrov (Great Rye Island) to differentiate it from Malý Žitný ostrov

Szigetköz

The Szigetköz is an island plain in Western Hungary, part of the Little Hungarian Plain. The name literally means island alley, because the territory is located on an island. Its borders are the Danube and its branches; with a length of 52.5 km, with an average width of 6–8 km, and with...

 (Small Rye Island) , is a river island

River Island

River Island is one of Britain's best known high street fashion brands and can be found in most cities across the UK. The brand also has stores in Singapore, Turkey, Poland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the Middle East.-History:...

 in southwestern Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

, extending from Bratislava

Bratislava

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...

 to Komárno

Komárno

Komárno is a town in Slovakia at the confluence of the Danube and the Váh rivers. Komárno was formed from part of a historical town in Hungary situated on both banks of the Danube. Following World War I, the border of the newly created Czechoslovakia cut the historical, unified town in half,...

. It lies between the Danube

Danube

The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

 and its tributary Little Danube

Little Danube

The Little Danube is a branch of the river Danube in Slovakia.It splits from the main river near Bratislava, and flows more or less parallel to the Danube until it flows into the river Váh in Kolárovo...

 and is a major part of the Danubian Flat

Danubian Flat

The Danubian Flat , also translated as Danubian Plain, is the south-western, more flat, part of the Danubian Lowland in Slovakia.The border with the Danubian Hills runs approx...

. It is the biggest river island in Europe with an area of 1,886 km², being 84 km long and 15 – 30 km wide.

The main towns on the island are Komárno

Komárno

Komárno is a town in Slovakia at the confluence of the Danube and the Váh rivers. Komárno was formed from part of a historical town in Hungary situated on both banks of the Danube. Following World War I, the border of the newly created Czechoslovakia cut the historical, unified town in half,...

, Dunajská Streda

Dunajská Streda

Dunajská Streda is a town in southern Slovakia . Dunajská Streda is the most important town of the Žitný ostrov region. It has a Hungarian ethnic majority and its population is 23,562 -Name:...

, and Šamorín

Šamorín

Šamorín or Somorja is a small town in western Slovakia, southeast of Bratislava.-Geography:The town is located on the Danubian Flat at the Žitný ostrov island, near the Gabčíkovo dam on the Danube. It is located around 17 km south-east of Bratislava and 25 km west of Dunajská Streda...

. The island is an important reservoir of drinking water and an agricultural region.

Southern parts of Žitný ostrov by the Danube are protected by Dunajské luhy Protected Landscape Area

Dunajské luhy Protected Landscape Area

Dunajské luhy Protected Landscape Area is one of the youngest of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. The Landscape Area consists of five separate parts in the Danube Lowland, stretching from Bratislava in the north west, following the Danube and the borders between Slovakia and Hungary...

.

External links and references

• Žitný ostrov at Slovakia.travel