0249 Germany - Main river

The name Main derives from the Latin Moenus or Menus, and is not related to the name of the city Mainz. 

The Main River flows southwesterly around the northern end of the Fränkische Mountains to Bamberg, where the Regnitz River enters it from the left. From there the Main flows south and east among vine-clad hills to Würzburg and then north between the forest-covered Spessart and Odenwald ranges to Gemünden, where the Fränkische Saale River enters from the right. Turning abruptly to the south, it receives the Tauber River from the left at Wertheim and continues west and then north to Aschaffenburg. From there, a generally westward course takes the river through Frankfurt am Main to its junction with the Rhine River above Mainz after a course of 524 km.