Before the advent of railway, rivers were the main transportation routes in France. France is home to 24 rivers which exceed 300 km in length, whereas Italy and Britain only have four and two, respectively. So important were these waterways, that out of the 95 metropolitan départements (administrative divisions), 66 are named after rivers.
Rivers which flow into the sea (or into a desert or lake) are called fleuves, and when they flow into other rivers, rivières.