The New International Encyclopædia/Balaton, Lake

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1555027The New International Encyclopædia — Balaton, Lake

BALATON, bŏ'lŏ-tṓn, Lake (Hung. for Ger. Plattensee). A lake, the largest in Hungary, about 55 miles southwest of Budapest (Map: Hungary, E 3). Its extreme length is 48 miles, with a breadth of from 3 to 10 miles, and an estimated area, including its frequently submerged marshes, of 420 square miles. Its greatest depth is 40 feet. It is fed by numerous streams and springs, and discharges its superfluous waters through the Sió, the Kapos River, and the Kapos Canal into the Danube. The southern bank is low, while the northern is bounded by vine-clad hills. The lake abounds in fish.