The River Foss is in North Yorkshire, England. It is a tributary of the River Ouse. It rises in the Foss Crooks Woods near Oulston Reservoir close to the village of Yearsley and runs south through the Vale of York to the Ouse in the centre of York. The name most likely comes from the Latin word Fossa, meaning ditch. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book. The York district was settled by Norwegian and Danish people, so parts of the place names could be old Norse. Referring to the etymological dictionary "Etymologisk ordbog", ISBN 82-905-2016-6 deals with the common Danish and Norwegian languages – roots of words and the original meaning. The old Norse word Fos (waterfall) means impetuous. The River Foss was dammed, and even though the elevation to the River Ouse is small, a waterfall was formed. This may have led to the name Fos which became Foss.
The River Foss at York, looking upstream. The bridge is the Foss Bridge (1811–12), which links the streets of Fossgate and Walmgate.
The River Foss in Central York
York Foss Locks and Sluice in the late 1980s
Oulston Reservoir near source of River Foss 54°09′48″N 1°08′10″W / 54.163205°N 1.136180°W / 54.163205; -1.136180
The River Ouse is a river in North Yorkshire, England. Hydrologically, the river is a continuation of the River Ure, and the combined length of the River Ure and River Ouse makes it, at 129 miles (208 km), the sixth-longest river of the United Kingdom and the longest to flow entirely in one county. The length of the Ouse alone is about 52 miles (84 km) but the total length of the river is disputed.
The River Ouse in York
The 2010 floods in York, caused by the River Ouse
Nun Monkton, north west of York
The River Ouse in the city of York
