Abitibi River

river, Ontario, Canada

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Article History

Abitibi River, river, northeastern Ontario, Canada. From its source in the shallow 359-square-mile (931-square-km) Abitibi Lake, lying across the Ontario-Quebec border, the river descends 868 feet (265 m) as it flows generally northward for 340 miles (547 km) to join the Moose River and empty into the southern end of James Bay. The heavily forested Abitibi River valley supports an extensive pulp and paper industry, centred at Iroquois Falls. Gold mining has long been important in the lake region, and tourism has become increasingly significant in the economy. Abitibi is an Algonquian Indian term (abitah, “middle,” and nipi, “water”) describing the lake’s midway location on an old canoe route between the Ottawa Valley and James Bay.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.