Wurm

Wurm
Wurm
	Zwei Mühlen on the Wurm between Schloss Rimburg (D) and the village of Rimburg (NL)
	Course of the Inde, Wurm and Rur
Location
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Reference no.	DE: 2828
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	South of Aachen
• coordinates	50°44′15″N 6°05′16″E / 50.7374694°N 6.0877111°E
• elevation	265 m above sea level (NN)
Mouth
• location	North of Heinsberg into the Rur
• coordinates	51°05′52″N 6°06′22″E / 51.0977°N 6.1062°E
• elevation	32 m above sea level (NN)
Length	57.1 km (35.5 mi)
Basin size	355.518 km2 (137.266 sq mi)
Basin features
Progression	Rur→ Meuse→ North Sea
Landmarks	Cities: Aachen; Large towns: Geilenkirchen;

The Wurm (German pronunciation: [vʊʁm]; Dutch: Worm [ʋɔr(ə)m]) is a river in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in western Germany. It rises in the Eifel mountains and flows for 57 kilometres before discharging into the Rur.

Geography[edit]

The Wurm is a left (western) tributary of the Rur (Dutch: Roer). The Rur is a tributary of the Meuse.

The sources of the Wurm are several brooks in the forests southwest of Aachen, which form the Wurm after the Diepenbenden reservoir. From there the Wurm nowadays flows through canals through the city of Aachen, until it resurfaces again at the Europaplatz in the east of Aachen. North of Aachen (between Kerkrade and Herzogenrath) the river forms the border with the Netherlands for approximately 10 km. It flows into the Rur near Heinsberg.

Other towns on the river Wurm are Würselen, Übach-Palenberg and Geilenkirchen.

The name Wurm is thought to originate from the German word warm (same meaning in English), as the source brooks were fed from the thermal springs in Aachen.