Oyabe River

Oyabe River (Oyabe-gawa)
小矢部川
River
Name origin: Ainu
Country	Japan
State	Toyama
Region	Chūbu
Municipalities	Nanto, Oyabe, Takaoka, Imizu
Source	Mount Daimon
- location	Nanto, Toyama, Japan
- elevation	1,572 m (5,157 ft)
- coordinates	36°24′10″N 137°36′18″E / 36.40278°N 137.605°E / 36.40278; 137.605
Mouth	Sea of Japan
- location	Takaoka & Imizu, Toyama, Japan
- elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	68 km (42 mi)
Basin	682 km2 (263 sq mi)
Discharge
- average	24.31 m3/s (858 cu ft/s)

The Oyabe River (小矢部川, Oyabegawa^?) is a river in Toyama Prefecture, Japan.

The river rises from Mount Daimon on the border of Ishikawa Prefecture and enters the sea at Toyama Bay.

The name Oyabe is meaningless in Japanese. It appears to be an Ainu name, oyaw pet [ojawbet] 'snake river', perhaps due to its serpentine course; there is also a legend of a battle with a monstrous snake, whose death created part of the local landscape.^[1]

References

1. ^ Vovin, Alexander (2008). "Man'yōshū to Fudoki ni Mirareru Fushigina Kotoba to Jōdai Nihon Retto ni Okeru Ainugo no Bunpu." Kokusai Nihon Bunka Kenkyū Sentā.