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{{Short description|Artificial channel for water}}
{{Redirect|Canals|the surname|Canals (surname)}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use Oxford spelling|date=September 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{More citations needed|date=February 2025}}

[[File:Alter Strom.jpg|thumb|The Alter Strom, in the sea resort of [[Warnemünde]], Germany]]
[[File:IMG RoyalCanalnrKinnegad5706w.jpg|thumb|The [[Royal Canal]] in [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]]]
[[File:Basingstoke Canal - Lock.JPG|thumb|Small boat canals such as the [[Basingstoke Canal]] fuelled the Industrial Revolution in much of [[Europe]] and the [[United States]].]]
[[File:Ponte_sul_Naviglio.jpg|thumb|right|Bridge on the [[Naviglio Grande]], in the town of [[Cassinetta di Lugagnano]], in [[Italy]]]]
[[File:Broek in Waterland, woonhuis aan het Ee.jpg|thumb|Canal in [[Broek in Waterland]], Netherlands]]
[[File:Wenecja, kanał wodny (Aw58TF).jpg|thumb|Canal in [[Venice]]]]

'''Canals''' or '''artificial waterways''' are [[waterway]]s or [[river engineering|engineered]] [[channel (geography)|channel]]s built for [[drainage]] management (e.g. [[flood control]] and [[irrigation]]) or for conveyancing [[water transport]] [[watercraft|vehicle]]s (e.g. [[water taxi]]). They carry free, calm surface flow under [[atmospheric pressure]], and can be thought of as artificial [[river]]s.

In most cases, a canal has a series of [[dam]]s and [[lock (water transport)|locks]] that create [[reservoir]]s of low speed current flow. These reservoirs are referred to as ''slack water levels'', often just called ''levels''. A canal can be called a '''navigation canal''' when it parallels a natural river and shares part of the latter's [[discharge (hydrology)|discharge]]s and [[drainage basin]], and leverages its resources by building dams and locks to increase and lengthen its stretches of slack water levels while staying in its [[valley]].

A canal can cut across a [[drainage divide]] atop a [[ridge]], generally requiring an external water source above the highest [[elevation]]. The best-known example of such a canal is the [[Panama Canal]].

Many canals have been built at elevations, above valleys and other waterways. Canals with sources of water at a higher level can deliver water to a destination such as a city where water is needed. The [[Roman Empire]]'s [[aqueduct (bridge)|aqueduct]]s were such [[water supply]] canals.

The term was once used to describe [[Martian canals|certain linear features]] on the surface of [[Mars]], though modern imaging has shown this to be a misnomer.

==Types of artificial waterways==
[[File:Saimaa canal at Lappeenranta Finland.jpg|thumb|[[Saimaa Canal]], a transportation canal between [[Finland]] and [[Russia]], in [[Lappeenranta]]]]
A ''navigation'' is a series of channels that run roughly parallel to the valley and [[stream bed]] of an unimproved river. A navigation always shares the [[drainage basin]] of the river. A vessel uses the calm parts of the river itself as well as improvements, traversing the same changes in height.

A true ''canal'' is a channel that cuts across a [[drainage divide]], making a navigable channel connecting two different [[drainage basin]]s.
[[File:Canal, Westbury Court Garden - geograph.org.uk - 1416966.jpg|thumb|[[Westbury Court Garden]]: the garden "[[Canal (garden history)|Canal]]"]]

==Structures used in artificial waterways==

Both navigations and canals use [[civil engineering|engineered]] structures to improve navigation:
* [[weir]]s and [[dam]]s to raise river water levels to usable depths;
* looping descents to create a longer and gentler channel around a stretch of rapids or falls;
* [[lock (water transport)|locks]] to allow ships and barges to ascend and descend.

Since they cut across drainage divides, rather than following the natural water level, true canals are more difficult to construct and often need additional improvements, such as [[viaduct]]s and [[Aqueduct (bridge)|aqueducts]].

==Types of canals==
There are two broad types of canal:
* [[Waterway]]s: canals and navigations used for carrying vessels transporting goods and people. These can be subdivided into two kinds:
:* Those connecting existing [[lake]]s, [[river]]s, other canals or seas and [[ocean]]s.
:* Those connected in a city network: such as the ''[[Grand Canal (Venice)|Canal Grande]]'' and others of [[Venice]]; the ''[[gracht]]en'' of [[Amsterdam]] or [[Utrecht]], and the waterways of [[Bangkok]].
* [[aqueduct (watercourse)|Aqueducts]]: [[water supply]] canals that are used for the conveyance and delivery of [[potable]] water, [[municipal]] uses, hydro [[power canal]]s and [[agriculture]] [[irrigation]].
[[File:Chutes Loading the Canal Boats on the Lehigh Canal.jpg|thumb|Loading [[Anthracite]] on the [[Lehigh Canal]] to feed the early United States industries in the pioneer-era]]
[[File:River Levee Cross Section Figure.svg|thumb|
1. Design High Water Level (HWL)
2. Low water channel
3. Flood channel
4. Riverside slope
5. Riverside banquette
6. Levee crown
7. Landside slope
8. Landside banquette
9. Berm
10. Low water revetment
11. Riverside land
12. Levee
13. Protected lowland
14. River zone]]
[[File:MurtfaltalrDanubeChannel.JPG|thumb|The [[Danube-Black Sea Canal]] in [[Romania]]]]
[[File:AmsterdamRijnkanaal.air.jpg|thumb|The [[Amsterdam-Rhine Canal]] near [[Rijswijk]], Netherlands]]

==Importance==
<!-- This section needs information on irrigation canals. -->Historically, canals were of immense importance to the commerce, development, growth and vitality of a civilization. The movement of bulk raw materials such as coal and ores—practically a prerequisite for further urbanization and industrialization—were difficult and only marginally affordable to move without water transport. The movement of bulk raw materials, facilitated by canals, fueled the [[Industrial Revolution]], leading to new research disciplines, new industries and economies of scale, raising the standard of living for industrialized societies.

The few canals still in operation in the 21st century are a fraction of the number that were once maintained during the earlier part of the Industrial Revolution. Their replacement was gradual, beginning first in the United Kingdom in the 1840s, where canal shipping was first augmented and later superseded by the much faster, less geographically constrained, and generally cheaper to maintain [[railway]] system.

By the early 1880s, many canals could not compete with rail transport and were abandoned. In the 20th century, oil was increasingly the heating fuel of choice, and the volume of coal shipments began to decrease. After the [[World War I|First World War]], technological advances in [[Truck|motor trucks]] as well as expanding road networks saw increasing amounts of freight being transported by road, and the last small US barge canals saw a steady decline in cargo ton-miles.

The once critical smaller inland waterways conceived and engineered as boat and barge canals have largely been supplanted and filled in, abandoned and left to deteriorate, or kept in service under a park service and staffed by government employees, where dams and locks are maintained for flood control or pleasure boating. Today, most [[ship canal]]s (intended for larger, oceangoing vessels) primarily service [[bulk material handling|bulk cargo]] and large [[ship transport]]ation industries. 

The longest extant canal today, the [[Grand Canal (China)|Grand Canal]] in northern China, still remains in heavy use, especially the portion south of the [[Yellow River]]. It stretches from [[Beijing]] to [[Hangzhou]] at 1,794 kilometres (1,115 miles).

==Construction==
Canals are built in one of three ways, or a combination of the three, depending on available water and available path:
;Human made streams
* A canal can be created where no stream presently exists. Either the body of the canal is dug or the sides of the canal are created by making [[levee|dykes or levees]] by piling dirt, stone, concrete or other building materials. The finished shape of the canal as seen in cross section is known as the ''canal prism''.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Thompson|first1=Kristi|title=Glossary|url=https://www.usbr.gov/library/glossary/#C|website=www.usbr.gov|publisher=US Bureau of Reclamation|access-date=15 September 2017|language=en}}</ref> The water for the canal must be provided from an external source, like streams or reservoirs. Where the new waterway must change elevation engineering works like locks, lifts or elevators are constructed to raise and lower vessels. Examples include canals that connect valleys over a higher body of land, like [[Canal du Midi]], [[Canal de Briare]] and the [[Panama Canal]].
* A canal can be constructed by dredging a channel in the bottom of an existing lake. When the channel is complete, the lake is drained and the channel becomes a new canal, serving both drainage of the surrounding [[polder]] and providing transport there. Examples include the {{Interlanguage link multi|Lage Vaart|nl}}. One can also build two parallel dikes in an existing lake, forming the new canal in between, and then drain the remaining parts of the lake. The eastern and central parts of the [[North Sea Canal]] were constructed in this way. In both cases pumping stations are required to keep the land surrounding the canal dry, either pumping water from the canal into surrounding waters, or pumping it from the land into the canal.
;Canalization and navigations
{{anchor|Canalization|Navigation|Navigations}}
* A stream can be ''[[River engineering#Canalization of rivers|canalized]]'' to make its navigable path more predictable and easier to maneuver. Canalization modifies the stream to carry traffic more safely by controlling the flow of the stream by dredging, damming and modifying its path. This frequently includes the incorporation of locks and spillways, that make the river a navigation. Examples include the [[Lehigh Canal]] in [[Lehigh Valley|Northeastern Pennsylvania]]'s [[coal Region]], [[Basse Saône]], [[Canal de Mines de Fer de la Moselle]], and canal [[Aisne (river)#Canalized portion|Aisne]]. [[Riparian zone restoration]] may be required.
{{anchor|Bypass canal|lateral canal}}
;Lateral canals
* When a stream is too difficult to modify with ''canalization'', a second stream can be created next to or at least near the existing stream. This is called a ''[[lateral canal]]'', and may meander in a large horseshoe bend or series of curves some distance from the source waters stream bed lengthening the effective length in order to lower the ratio of rise over run (slope or pitch). The existing stream usually acts as the water source and the landscape around its banks provide a path for the new body. Examples include the [[Chesapeake and Ohio Canal]], [[Canal latéral à la Loire]], [[Garonne Lateral Canal]], [[Welland Canal]] and [[Juliana Canal]].

Smaller transportation canals can carry [[barge]]s or [[narrowboat]]s, while [[ship canal]]s allow seagoing ships to travel to an inland port (e.g., [[Manchester Ship Canal]]), or from one sea or ocean to another (e.g., [[Caledonian Canal]], [[Panama Canal]]).

==Features==
At their simplest, canals consist of a trench filled with water. Depending on the [[stratum]] the canal passes through, it may be necessary to [[canal lining|line]] the cut with some form of watertight material such as clay or concrete. When this is done with clay, it is known as [[Puddling (engineering)|puddling]].

Canals need to be level, and while small irregularities in the lie of the land can be dealt with through cuttings and embankments, for larger deviations other approaches have been adopted. The most common is the [[pound lock]], which consists of a chamber within which the water level can be raised or lowered connecting either two pieces of canal at a different level or the canal with a river or the sea. When there is a hill to be climbed, flights of many locks in short succession may be used.

Prior to the development of the (double-gated) pound lock in 10th-century China<ref>{{Harvnb|Hadfield|1986|p=22.}}</ref> and 15th-century Europe, vessels had to ascend and descend either with [[flash lock]]s, consisting of a single gate, or with ramps, sometimes equipped with rollers. Flash locks were cumbersome and only usable where there was plenty of water available.

Cycling a lock uses a large amount of water, so builders have adopted other approaches for situations where little water is available. These include [[boat lift]]s, such as the [[Falkirk Wheel]], which use a [[caisson (water transport)|caisson]] of water in which boats float while being moved between two levels; and [[canal inclined plane|inclined planes]] where a caisson is hauled up a steep railway.

The crossing of a stream, road or valley, where the delay caused by a flight of locks at either side would be unacceptable, may be achieved by the construction of a [[navigable aqueduct]], such as the [[Pontcysyllte Aqueduct]] (now a [[UNESCO]] [[List of World Heritage Sites of the United Kingdom|World Heritage Site]]) across the valley of the [[River Dee (Wales)|River Dee]] in [[Wales]].

Another option for dealing with hills is to tunnel through them. An example of this approach is the [[Harecastle Tunnel]] on the [[Trent and Mersey Canal]]. Tunnels are only practical for smaller canals.

Some canals attempted to keep changes in level down to a minimum. These canals known as [[contour canal]]s would take longer, winding routes, along which the land was a uniform altitude. Other, generally later, canals took more direct routes requiring the use of various methods to deal with the change in level.

Canals have various features to tackle the problem of water supply. In cases, like the Suez Canal, the canal is open to the sea. Where the canal is not at sea level, a number of approaches have been adopted. Taking water from existing rivers or springs was an option in some cases, sometimes supplemented by other methods to deal with seasonal variations in flow. Where such sources were unavailable, [[reservoirs]]&nbsp;– either separate from the canal or built into its course&nbsp;– and [[back pumping]] were used to provide the required water. In other cases, water pumped from mines was used to feed the canal. In certain cases, extensive "feeder canals" were built to bring water from sources located far from the canal.

Where large amounts of goods are loaded or unloaded such as at the end of a canal, a [[canal basin]] may be built. This would normally be a section of water wider than the general canal. In some cases, the canal basins contain [[wharf]]s and cranes to assist with movement of goods.

When a section of the canal needs to be sealed off so it can be drained for maintenance [[stop planks]] are frequently used. These consist of planks of wood placed across the canal to form a dam. They are generally placed in pre-existing grooves in the canal bank. On more modern canals, "guard locks" or gates were sometimes placed to allow a section of the canal to be quickly closed off, either for maintenance, or to prevent a major loss of water due to a canal breach.

===Canal falls===
A ''canal fall'', or canal drop, is a vertical drop in the canal bed.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 643 --> These are built when the natural ground slope is steeper than the desired canal gradient.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 643 --> They are constructed so the falling water's kinetic energy is dissipated in order to prevent it from [[hydrodynamic scour|scouring]] the bed and sides of the canal.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 643 --><ref name="Sharma 2016">{{cite book |last1=Sharma |first1=S. K. |title=Irrigation Engineering and Hydraulic Structures |date=2016 |publisher=S Chand and Company |location=New Delhi |isbn=978-93-525-3377-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WkRxDwAAQBAJ |access-date=31 July 2023}}</ref>{{rp|643}}

A canal fall is constructed by [[cut and fill]].<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 643 --> It may be combined with a regulator, bridge, or other structure to save costs.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 644 --><ref name="Sharma 2016"/>{{rp|643–4}}

There are various types of canal falls, based on their shape.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 644 --> One type is the [[ogee]] fall, where the drop follows an s-shaped curve to create a smooth transition and reduce [[turbulence]].<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 644 --> However, this smooth transition does not dissipate the water's kinetic energy, which leads to heavy scouring.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 644 --> As a result, the canal needs to be reinforced with concrete or masonry to protect it from eroding.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 644 --><ref name="Sharma 2016"/>{{rp|644}}

Another type of canal fall is the vertical fall, which is "simple and economical".<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 646 --> These feature a "cistern", or depressed area just downstream from the fall, to "cushion" the water by providing a deep pool for its kinetic energy to be [[diffusion|diffused]] in.<!-- Sharma 2016, p. 646 --> Vertical falls work for drops of up to {{cvt|1.5|m|ft|0}} in height, and for discharge of up to {{convert|15|m3/s}}.<ref name="Sharma 2016"/><!-- Sharma 2016, p. 646 -->{{rp|646}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="135">
File:Caen.hill.locks.in.devizes.arp.jpg|alt=A series of approximately 20 black lock gates with white ends to the paddle arms and wooden railings, each slightly higher than the one below. On the right is a path and on both side's grass and vegetation.|The flight of 16 consecutive locks at [[Caen Hill Locks|Caen Hill]] on the [[Kennet and Avon Canal]], [[Wiltshire]]
File:Pontcysyllte aqueduct arp.jpg|[[Llangollen Canal|The Llangollen Canal]] traverses [[Pontcysyllte Aqueduct|the longest and highest aqueduct]] in [[Wrexham County Borough|Wrexham]], Wales, United Kingdom 
File:Canal of korinth greece.jpg|The [[Corinth Canal]] seen from the air
File:Miami and Erie Canal Lock photographs - DPLA - 02d6f9c193ca64978e408b5e50a34a5d (page 1).jpg|Miami and Erie Canal Lock in Ohio, United States
</gallery>

==History==
[[File:Canal de la Peyrade, Sète, Hérault 01.jpg|thumb|Canal in [[Sète]], France]]
The transport capacity of [[pack animal]]s and [[cart]]s is limited. A mule can carry a {{convert|250|lb|kg|adj=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}}<ref name="WorksOfMan"/> maximum load over a journey of several days or weeks,<ref name="WorksOfMan"/> though much more for shorter distances and periods with appropriate rest.<ref name="WorksOfMan"/> Besides, carts need roads. Transport over water is much more efficient and cost-effective for large cargoes.

===Ancient canals===
{{See also|List of Roman canals|Qanat}}
The oldest known canals were [[irrigation]] canals, built in [[Mesopotamia]] {{circa|4000 BC}}, in what is now [[Iraq]]. The [[Indus Valley civilization]] in what is now [[Pakistan]] and Northwestern [[India]] (c.&nbsp;3000&nbsp;BC) had sophisticated irrigation and storage systems developed, including the [[reservoir]]s built at [[Girnar]] in 3000&nbsp;BC.<ref>{{Harvnb|Rodda|2004|p=161.}}</ref> This is the first time that such planned civil project had taken place in the ancient world. In [[Egypt]], canals date back at least to the time of [[Pepi I Meryre]] (reigned 2332–2283&nbsp;BC), who ordered a canal built to bypass the [[Cataracts of the Nile|cataract]] on the Nile near [[Aswan]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Hadfield|1986|p=16.}}</ref>
[[File:Xu Yang - Junks on the canal.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Grand Canal of China]] at [[Suzhou, Jiangsu|Suzhou]]]]
In [[History of China#Ancient China|ancient China]], large canals for river transport were established as far back as the [[Spring and Autumn period]] (8th–5th centuries BC), the longest one of that period being the Hong Gou (Canal of the Wild Geese), which according to the ancient historian [[Sima Qian]] connected the old states of Song, Zhang, Chen, Cai, Cao, and Wei.<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|1971|p=269.}}</ref> The [[Caoyun System]] of canals was essential for imperial taxation, which was largely assessed in kind and involved enormous shipments of rice and other grains. By far the longest canal was the [[Grand Canal of China]], still the longest canal in the world today and the oldest extant one.<ref name="Langmead">{{cite book|author=Donald Langmead|title=Encyclopedia of Architectural and Engineering Feats|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofar0000lang|url-access=registration|access-date=15 February 2013|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-57607-112-0|page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofar0000lang/page/37 37]|quote=the world's largest artificial waterway and oldest canal still in existence|year=2001}}</ref> It is {{convert|1794|km|mi}} long and was built to carry the [[Emperor Yang of Sui|Emperor Yang Guang]] between Zhuodu ([[Beijing]]) and Yuhang ([[Hangzhou]]). The project began in 605 and was completed in 609, although much of the work combined older canals, the oldest section of the canal existing since at least 486&nbsp;BC. Even in its narrowest urban sections it is rarely less than {{convert|30|m|ft}} wide.

In the 5th century&nbsp;BC, [[Achaemenid]] king [[Xerxes I]] of Persia ordered the construction of the [[Xerxes Canal]] through the base of [[Mount Athos]] peninsula, [[Chalkidiki]], northern Greece.<ref name="VII, 22">Herodotus [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hdt.+7.22 VII, 22]</ref> It was constructed as part of his preparations for the [[Second Persian invasion of Greece]], a part of the [[Greco-Persian Wars]]. It is one of the few monuments left by the Persian Empire in [[Europe]].<ref name="BSA98">B. S. J. Isserlin, R. E. Jones, V. Karastathis, S. P. Papamarinopoulos, G. E. Syrides and J. Uren "The Canal of Xerxes: Summary of Investigations 1991-2001" The Annual of the British School at Athens Vol. 98 (2003), pp. 369–385 {{JSTOR|30073214}}.</ref>

[[Greek engineering|Greek engineers]] were also among the first to use [[Lock (water transport)|canal locks]], by which they regulated the water flow in the [[Ancient Suez Canal]] as early as the 3rd century&nbsp;BC.<ref>Moore, Frank Gardner (1950): "Three Canal Projects, Roman and Byzantine", ''[[American Journal of Archaeology]]'', Vol. 54, No. 2, pp. 97–111 (99–101)</ref><ref name="Froriep 1986, 46">Froriep, Siegfried (1986): "Ein Wasserweg in Bithynien. Bemühungen der Römer, Byzantiner und Osmanen", ''Antike Welt'', 2nd Special Edition, pp. 39–50 (46)</ref><ref>Schörner, Hadwiga (2000): "Künstliche Schiffahrtskanäle in der Antike. Der sogenannte antike Suez-Kanal", ''Skyllis'', Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 28–43 (33–35)</ref>
<blockquote>
There was little experience moving bulk loads by carts, while a pack-horse would [i.e. 'could'] carry only an eighth of a ton. On a soft road a horse might be able to draw 5/8ths of a ton. But if the load were carried by a barge on a waterway, then up to 30 tons could be drawn by the same horse.<br />— technology historian [[Ronald W. Clark]] referring to transport realities before the industrial revolution and the [[Canal age]].<ref name="WorksOfMan">''"Works of Man"'', [[Ronald W. Clark]], {{ISBN|0-670-80483-5}} (1985) 352 pages, Viking Penguin, Inc, New York, <br />quotation p. 87: "There was little experience moving bulk loads by carts, while a packhorse would [sic, meaning 'could' or 'can only'] carry only an eighth of a ton. On a soft road a horse might be able to draw 5/8ths of a ton. But if the load were carried by a barge on a waterway, then up to 30 tons could be drawn by the same horse.</ref></blockquote>

[[Hohokam]] was a society in the [[Indigenous peoples of the North American Southwest|North American Southwest]] in what is now part of [[Arizona]], United States, and [[Sonora]], Mexico. Their irrigation systems supported the largest population in the Southwest by 1300&nbsp;AD.<ref name="AZMNH" /> Archaeologists working at a major archaeological dig in the 1990s in the Tucson Basin, along the Santa Cruz River, identified a culture and people that may have been the ancestors of the Hohokam.<ref>2007-036 General COP Treatment Plan; Pueblo Grande Museum Project 2007–95; City of Phoenix Project No. ST87350010; [http://phoenix.gov/webcms/groups/internet/@inter/@rec/@arts/@mus/@pueblo/documents/web_content/gentrtment.pdf#page=17 '''p. 9''' ''Cultural Context''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140324215827/http://phoenix.gov/webcms/groups/internet/@inter/@rec/@arts/@mus/@pueblo/documents/web_content/gentrtment.pdf#page=17 |date=March 24, 2014 }}</ref> This prehistoric group occupied southern Arizona as early as 2000&nbsp;BC, and in the Early Agricultural period grew corn, lived year-round in sedentary villages, and developed sophisticated irrigation canals.<ref name="AZMNH">{{cite web|title=The Hohokam|url=http://www.azmnh.org/arch/hohokam.aspx|publisher=Arizona Museum of Natural History, City of Mesa|access-date=November 30, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121130091322/http://www.azmnh.org/arch/hohokam.aspx|archive-date=November 30, 2012|df=mdy-all}}</ref>
The large-scale Hohokam irrigation network in the [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix metropolitan area]] was the most complex in ancient North America. A portion of the ancient canals has been renovated for the [[Salt River Project]] and now helps to supply the city's water.

[[File:Yodha Ela.jpg|thumb|Yodha Ela, [[Anuradhapura]], [[Sri Lanka]]]]
The [[Sinhalese people|Sinhalese]] constructed the {{cvt|87|km|mi}} [[Yodha Ela]] in 459&nbsp;AD as a part of their [[Sri Lankan irrigation network|extensive irrigation network]] which functioned in a way of a moving reservoir due to its single banking aspect to manage the canal pressure with the influx of water. It was also designed as an elongated reservoir passing through traps creating 66 mini catchments as it flows from [[Kala Wewa]] to [[Tissa Wewa (Anuradhapura)|Thissa Wawa]]. The canal was not designed for the quick conveying of water from Kala Wewa to Thissa Wawa but to create a mass of water between the two reservoirs, which would in turn provide for agriculture and the use of humans and animals.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://srilanka.travel/yoda-ela |title=Yoda Ela – An Ancient Engineering Marvel}}</ref>
<ref>{{cite book|title=Outlines of Ceylon History|isbn = 9788120613638|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cDwvQF_OgvMC&q=yodha+ela&pg=PA77|last1 = Obeyesekere|first1 = Donald|year = 1999| publisher=Asian Educational Services }}</ref> They also achieved a rather low gradient for its time. The canal is still in use after renovation.

===Middle Ages===
[[File:Thal Canal.JPG|thumb|Thal Canal, [[Punjab, Pakistan]]]]
In the [[Middle Ages]], water transport was several times cheaper and faster than transport overland. Overland transport by [[animal power|animal drawn]] conveyances was used around settled areas, but unimproved roads required pack animal trains, usually of [[mule]]s to carry any degree of mass, and while a mule could carry an eighth ton,<ref name="WorksOfMan"/> it also needed teamsters to tend it and one man could only tend perhaps five mules,<ref name="WorksOfMan"/> meaning overland [[bulk transport]] was also expensive, as men expect compensation in the form of wages, room and board. This was because long-haul roads were unpaved, more often than not too narrow for carts, much less wagons, and in poor condition, wending their way through forests, marshy or muddy quagmires as often as unimproved but dry footing. In that era, as today, greater cargoes, especially bulk goods and [[raw material]]s, could be transported by ship far more economically than by land; in the pre-railroad days of the industrial revolution, water transport was the gold standard of fast transportation. The first artificial canal in Western Europe was the [[Fossa Carolina]] built at the end of the 8th century under personal supervision of [[Charlemagne]].

In Britain, the [[Glastonbury Canal (medieval)|Glastonbury Canal]] is believed to be the first post-Roman canal and was built in the middle of the 10th century to link the [[River Brue]] at Northover<ref>specifically from ({{Coord|51.1384|N|2.7358|W|display=inline|region:GB-SOM_type:landmark|format=dms|name=Start point at River Brue}}), Start point at River Brue</ref> with [[Glastonbury Abbey]], a distance of about {{convert|1.75|km|yd|-2}}.<ref>Details text and data with cites from [[Glastonbury Canal (medieval)]].</ref> Its initial purpose is believed to be the transport of building stone for the abbey, but later it was used for delivering produce, including grain, wine and fish, from the abbey's outlying properties. It remained in use until at least the 14th century, but possibly as late as the mid-16th century.<ref name=Gathercole>{{Cite book|last=Gathercole |first=Clare |title=An archaeological assessment of Glastonbury |publisher=Somerset County Council |location=Taunton |year=2003 |series=English Heritage Extensive Urban Survey |pages=19–20 |url=http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/hes/downloads/EUS_GlastonburyText.pdf |access-date=2 February 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715230717/http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/hes/downloads/EUS_GlastonburyText.pdf |archive-date=15 July 2011 }}</ref>

More lasting and of more economic impact were canals like the [[Naviglio Grande]] built between 1127 and 1257 to connect [[Milan]] with the river [[Ticino (river)|Ticino]]. The Naviglio Grande is the most important of the [[Lombardy|lombard]] "[[navigli]]"<ref>{{Harvnb|Calvert|1963|p=.}}</ref> and the oldest functioning canal in Europe.

Later, canals were built in the [[Netherlands]] and [[Flanders]] to drain the [[polder]]s and assist transportation of goods and people.

Canal building was revived in this age because of commercial expansion from the 12th century. River navigations were improved progressively by the use of single, or [[flash lock]]s. Taking boats through these used large amounts of water leading to conflicts with [[watermill]] owners and to correct this, the [[Pound lock|pound]] or chamber lock first appeared, in the 10th century in China and in Europe in 1373 in [[Vreeswijk]], Netherlands.<ref>{{Citation | title = The International Canal Monuments List | url = http://www.icomos.org/studies/canals.pdf| access-date = 8 October 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130810162849/http://www.icomos.org/studies/canals.pdf | archive-date = 10 August 2013 | url-status = dead }}</ref> Another important development was the [[mitre gate]], which was, it is presumed, introduced in Italy by Bertola da Novate in the 16th century. This allowed wider gates and also removed the height restriction of [[guillotine lock]]s.

To break out of the limitations caused by river valleys, the first [[summit level canal]]s were developed with the [[Grand Canal (China)|Grand Canal of China]] in 581–617&nbsp;AD whilst in Europe the first, also using single locks, was the [[Stecknitz Canal]] in Germany in 1398.

====Africa====
In the [[Songhai Empire]] of West Africa, several canals were constructed under [[Sunni Ali]] and [[Askia Muhammad I]] between [[Kabara, Mali|Kabara]] and [[Timbuktu]] in the 15th century. These were used primarily for irrigation and transport. Sunni Ali also attempted to construct a canal from the [[Niger River]] to [[Walata]] to facilitate conquest of the city but his progress was halted when he went to war with the [[Mossi Kingdoms]].<ref>{{cite book | url=https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/file%20uploads%20/general_history_africa_iv.pdf | title=General History of Africa | publisher=Heinemann Educational Books, University of California Press, UNESCO | date=2000 | orig-date=1984 | volume=IV | pages=193–194 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611080711/https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/file%20uploads%20/general_history_africa_iv.pdf | archive-date=2020-06-11 | url-status=live }}</ref>

===Early modern period===
[[File:SL Negombo asv2020-01 img02 Dutch canal.jpg|thumb|Dutch canal in [[Negombo]], Sri Lanka]]
Around 1500–1800 the first summit level canal to use pound locks in Europe was the [[Briare Canal]] connecting the [[Loire]] and [[Seine]] (1642), followed by the more ambitious [[Canal du Midi]] (1683) connecting the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. This included a staircase of 8 locks at [[Béziers]], a {{convert|157|m|ft|adj=on}} tunnel, and three major aqueducts.

Canal building progressed steadily in Germany in the 17th and 18th centuries with three great rivers, the [[Elbe]], [[Oder]] and [[Weser]] being linked by canals. In post-Roman Britain, the first [[early modern period]] canal built appears to have been the [[Exeter Canal]], which was surveyed in 1563, and open in 1566.<ref name="exMems" >{{cite web
 |author=David Cornforth
 |url=http://www.exetermemories.co.uk/em/quay.php
 |publisher=<!-- url in data causes cites check faults {{plain link|http://www.exetermemories.co.uk/index.php |www.exetermemories.co.uk}} --->www.exetermemories.co.uk
 | title=Exeter Canal and Quayside – a short history|date= February 2012
 | access-date=14 September 2013
  }}</ref><ref name="ExGovPDF">Exeter history by www.exeter.gov.uk, .pdf file [http://www.exeter.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=7972&p=0 Exeter Ship Canal, The First Four Hundred Years] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919105030/http://www.exeter.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=7972&p=0 |date=19 September 2015 }}, accessdate=13 September 2013</ref>

The oldest canal in the European settlements of North America, technically a [[mill race]] built for industrial purposes, is [[Mother Brook]] between the [[Boston|Boston, Massachusetts]] neighbourhoods of [[Dedham, Massachusetts|Dedham]] and [[Hyde Park, Boston|Hyde Park]] connecting the higher waters of the [[Charles River]] and the mouth of the [[Neponset River]] and the sea. It was constructed in 1639 to provide water power for mills.

In Russia, the [[Volga–Baltic Waterway]], a nationwide canal system connecting the [[Baltic Sea]] and [[Caspian Sea]] via the [[Neva]] and [[Volga]] rivers, was opened in 1718.

===Industrial Revolution===
{{seealso|History of the British canal system|History of turnpikes and canals in the United States}}
[[File:1975 map of canal system in Lowell, Massachusetts.png|thumb|Lowell's power canal system]]

The modern canal system was mainly a product of the 18th century and early 19th century. It came into being because the [[Industrial Revolution]] (which began in Britain during the mid-18th century) demanded an economic and reliable way to transport goods and commodities in large quantities.

By the early 18th century, river navigations such as the [[Aire and Calder Navigation]] were becoming quite sophisticated, with [[pound lock]]s and longer and longer "cuts" (some with intermediate locks) to avoid circuitous or difficult stretches of river. Eventually, the experience of building long multi-level cuts with their own locks gave rise to the idea of building a "pure" canal, a waterway designed on the basis of where goods needed to go, not where a river happened to be.

The claim for the first pure canal in [[Great Britain]] is debated between "Sankey" and "Bridgewater" supporters.<ref name = burton-canals-3>{{Citation | first = Anthony | last = Burton | title = The Great Days of the Canals | publisher = Tiger Books | location = Twickenham | year = 1995 | orig-year = 1989 | isbn = 978-1-85501-695-8|chapter= 3: ''Building the Canals''}}</ref> The first true canal in what is now the United Kingdom was the [[Newry Canal]] in [[Northern Ireland]] constructed by [[Thomas Steers]] in 1741.

The [[Sankey Canal|Sankey Brook Navigation]], which connected [[St Helens, Merseyside|St Helens]] with the [[River Mersey]], is often claimed as the first modern "purely artificial" canal because although originally a scheme to make the Sankey Brook navigable, it included an entirely new artificial channel that was effectively a canal along the Sankey Brook valley.<ref name = burton-canals-3/><ref name = rolt-inland>Rolt, ''Inland Waterways''</ref> However, "Bridgewater" supporters point out that the last quarter-mile of the navigation is indeed a canalized stretch of the Brook, and that it was the Bridgewater Canal (less obviously associated with an existing river) that captured the popular imagination and inspired further canals.<ref name = burton-canals-3/><ref name = rolt-inland/>

[[File:Pickering's Bridge, Bridgewater Canal.jpg|thumb|[[Bridgewater Canal]] in England]]
In the mid-eighteenth century the [[Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater|3rd Duke of Bridgewater]], who owned a number of [[coal mine]]s in northern England, wanted a reliable way to transport his coal to the rapidly industrializing city of [[Manchester]]. He commissioned the engineer [[James Brindley]] to build a canal for that purpose. Brindley's design included an aqueduct carrying the canal over the [[River Irwell]]. This was an engineering wonder which immediately attracted tourists.<ref name = burton-canals-3/><ref name = rolt-inland/> The construction of this canal was funded entirely by the Duke and was called the [[Bridgewater Canal]]. It opened in 1761 and was the first major British canal.<ref name="N/A 1978 990">{{cite book|title=Reader's Digest Library of Modern Knowledge|location=London |publisher=Reader's Digest|year=1978|page=990}}</ref>

The new canals proved highly successful. The boats on the canal were horse-drawn with a [[towpath]] alongside the canal for the horse to walk along. This horse-drawn system proved to be highly economical and became standard across the British canal network. Commercial horse-drawn canal boats could be seen on the UK's canals until as late as the 1950s, although by then diesel-powered boats, often towing a second unpowered boat, had become standard.

The canal boats could carry thirty tons at a time with only one horse pulling<ref name="N/A 1978 990"/> – more than ten times the amount of cargo per horse that was possible with a cart. Because of this huge increase in supply, the Bridgewater canal reduced the price of coal in Manchester by nearly two-thirds within just a year of its opening. The Bridgewater was also a huge financial success, with it earning what had been spent on its construction within just a few years.

This success proved the viability of canal transport, and soon industrialists in many other parts of the country wanted canals. After the Bridgewater canal, early canals were built by groups of private individuals with an interest in improving communications. In Staffordshire the famous potter [[Josiah Wedgwood]] saw an opportunity to bring bulky cargoes of clay to his factory doors and to transport his fragile finished goods to market in Manchester, [[History of Birmingham#Transport and the growth of the town|Birmingham]] or further away, by water, minimizing breakages. Within just a few years of the Bridgewater's opening, an embryonic national canal network came into being, with the construction of canals such as the [[Oxford Canal]] and the [[Trent and Mersey Canal]].<ref name=CanalAge>{{cite book |last= Hadfield|first= Charles |title= The Canal Age|edition= Second|year= 1981|publisher= David & Charles|isbn= 978-0-7153-8079-6}}</ref>
[[File:Erie Canal, Lockport New York, c.1855.jpg|thumb|[[Erie Canal]], Lockport, New York, c. 1855]]
The new canal system was both cause and effect of the rapid industrialization of [[The Midlands]] and the north. The period between the 1770s and the 1830s is often referred to as the "Golden Age" of British canals.

For each canal, an [[act of Parliament (United Kingdom)|act of Parliament]] was necessary to authorize construction, and as people saw the high incomes achieved from canal tolls, canal proposals came to be put forward by investors interested in profiting from dividends, at least as much as by people whose businesses would profit from cheaper transport of raw materials and finished goods.

In a further development, there was often out-and-out speculation, where people would try to buy shares in a newly floated company to sell them on for an immediate profit, regardless of whether the canal was ever profitable, or even built. During this period of "[[Canal Mania|canal mania]]", huge sums were invested in canal building, and although many schemes came to nothing, the canal system rapidly expanded to nearly {{convert|4000|mi|km|order=flip}} in length.<ref name="N/A 1978 990"/>

Many rival canal companies were formed and competition was rampant. Perhaps the best example was [[Gas Street Basin|Worcester Bar]] in Birmingham, a point where the [[Worcester and Birmingham Canal]] and the [[BCN Main Line|Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line]] were only seven feet apart. For many years, a dispute about tolls meant that goods travelling through Birmingham had to be portaged from boats in one canal to boats in the other.<ref name=WestMidlands>{{cite book |last= Hadfield|first= Charles |title= The Canals of the West Midlands|year= 1966|publisher= David & Charles|isbn= 978-0-7153-4660-0}}</ref>

[[File:NYmohawk-ErieCanalRexford.JPG|thumb|upright=1.5|Aqueduct over the [[Mohawk River]] at [[Rexford, New York]], one of 32 [[navigable aqueduct]]s on the [[Erie Canal]]]]

Canal companies were initially chartered by individual states in the United States. These early canals were constructed, owned, and operated by private joint-stock companies. Four were completed when the [[War of 1812]] broke out; these were the [[South Hadley Canal]] (opened 1795) in [[Massachusetts]], [[Santee Canal]] (opened 1800) in [[South Carolina]], the [[Middlesex Canal]] (opened 1802) also in Massachusetts, and the [[Dismal Swamp Canal]] (opened 1805) in [[Virginia]]. The [[Erie Canal]] (opened 1825) was chartered and owned by the state of [[New York (state)|New York]] and financed by [[bond (finance)|bonds]] bought by private investors. The Erie canal runs about {{convert|363|mi|km|order=flip}} from [[Albany, New York]], on the [[Hudson River]] to [[Buffalo, New York]], at [[Lake Erie]]. The Hudson River connects Albany to the Atlantic port of [[History of New York City (1784–1854)|New York City]] and the Erie Canal completed a navigable water route from the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to the [[Great Lakes]]. The canal contains 36 locks and encompasses a total elevation differential of around {{cvt|565|ft|m|order=flip}}. The Erie Canal with its easy connections to most of the US mid-west and New York City soon quickly paid back all its invested capital (US$7 million) and started turning a profit. By cutting transportation costs in half or more it became a large profit center for Albany and New York City as it allowed the cheap transportation of many of the agricultural products grown in the mid west of the United States to the rest of the world. From New York City these agricultural products could easily be shipped to other US states or overseas. Assured of a market for their farm products the settlement of the US mid-west was greatly accelerated by the Erie Canal. The profits generated by the Erie Canal project started a canal building boom in the United States that lasted until about 1850 when [[railroad]]s started becoming seriously competitive in price and convenience. The [[Blackstone Canal]] (finished in 1828) in Massachusetts and [[Rhode Island]] fulfilled a similar role in the early industrial revolution between 1828 and 1848. The [[Blackstone Valley]] was a major contributor of the American Industrial Revolution where [[Samuel Slater]] built his first textile mill.

[[File:Gabčíkovo sluice Slovakia.jpg|thumb|right|[[Sluice]] in the canal of [[Gabčíkovo Dam]] (Slovakia) – the canal is conveying water to a hydroelectric power station.]]

===Power canals===
{{main|Power canal}}
A '''power canal''' refers to a canal used for [[hydropower|hydraulic power]] generation, rather than for transport. Nowadays power canals are built almost exclusively as parts of [[hydroelectric power station]]s. Parts of the United States, particularly in the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]], had enough fast-flowing rivers that [[water power]] was the primary means of powering factories (usually textile mills) until after the [[American Civil War]]. For example, [[Lowell, Massachusetts]], considered to be "The Cradle of the American Industrial Revolution," has {{convert|6|mi|km|order=flip|0}} of canals, built from around 1790 to 1850, that provided water power and a means of transportation for the city. The output of the system is estimated at {{convert|10000|hp|kW|order=flip}}.<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.nps.gov/archive/lowe/loweweb/Lowell%20History/prologue.htm | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070507043834/http://www.nps.gov/archive/lowe/loweweb/Lowell%20History/prologue.htm | url-status = dead | archive-date = 7 May 2007 | title = Lowell National Historical Park – Lowell History Prologue | access-date = 8 October 2008}}</ref> Other cities with extensive power canal systems include [[Lawrence, Massachusetts]], [[Holyoke, Massachusetts]], [[Manchester, New Hampshire]], and [[Augusta Canal|Augusta, Georgia]]. The most notable power canal was built in 1862 for the [[Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manufacturing Company]].

===19th century===
[[File:Canals USA 1825.png|thumb|right|American canals {{circa|1825}}]]
Competition, from railways from the 1830s and roads in the 20th century, made the smaller canals obsolete for most commercial transport, and many of the British canals fell into decay. Only the [[Manchester Ship Canal]] and the [[Aire and Calder Canal]] bucked this trend. Yet in other countries canals grew in size as construction techniques improved. During the 19th century in the US, the length of canals grew from {{convert|100|mi|km|order=flip}} to over {{convert|4000|mi|km|order=flip}}, with a complex network making the Great Lakes navigable, in conjunction with Canada, although some canals were later drained and used as railroad [[Right-of-way (railroad)|rights-of-way]].

In the United States, navigable canals reached into isolated areas and brought them in touch with the world beyond. By 1825 the Erie Canal, {{convert|363|mi|km|order=flip}} long with 36 locks, opened up a connection from the populated Northeast to the Great Lakes. Settlers flooded into regions serviced by such canals, since access to markets was available. The Erie Canal (as well as other canals) was instrumental in lowering the differences in commodity prices between these various markets across America. The canals caused price convergence between different regions because of their reduction in transportation costs, which allowed Americans to ship and buy goods from farther distances much cheaper. Ohio built many miles of canal, Indiana had working canals for a few decades, and the [[Illinois and Michigan Canal]] connected the Great Lakes to the [[Mississippi River]] system until replaced by a channelized river waterway.

[[File:Amsterdam - Herengracht - 0206.jpg|thumb|A family rides a boat in one of the [[canals of Amsterdam]].]]
Three major canals with very different purposes were built in what is now Canada. The first [[Welland Canal]], which opened in 1829 between [[Lake Ontario]] and Lake Erie, bypassing [[Niagara Falls]] and the [[Lachine Canal]] (1825), which allowed ships to skirt the nearly impassable rapids on the [[St. Lawrence River]] at [[Montreal]], were built for commerce. The [[Rideau Canal]], completed in 1832, connects [[Ottawa]] on the [[Ottawa River]] to [[Kingston, Ontario]] on Lake Ontario. The Rideau Canal was built as a result of the War of 1812 to provide military transportation between the British colonies of [[Upper Canada]] and [[Lower Canada]] as an alternative to part of the St. Lawrence River, which was susceptible to blockade by the United States.

[[File:1870 Nicaragua Canal Map Restoration.png|thumb|A proposal for the [[Nicaragua Canal]], from around 1870.]]
In France, a steady linking of all the river systems – [[Rhine]], [[Rhône]], [[Saône]] and Seine – and the North Sea was boosted in 1879 by the establishment of the [[Freycinet gauge]], which specified the minimum size of locks. Canal traffic doubled in the first decades of the 20th century.<ref>{{Harvnb|Edwards-May|2008|p=.}}</ref>

Many notable sea canals were completed in this period, starting with the [[Suez Canal]] (1869) – which carries tonnage many times that of most other canals – and the [[Kiel Canal]] (1897), though the Panama Canal was not opened until 1914.

In the 19th century, a number of canals were built in Japan including the [[Biwako canal]] and the [[Tone canal]]. These canals were partially built with the help of engineers from the Netherlands and other countries.<ref>{{Harvnb|Hadfield|1986|p=191.}}</ref>

A major question was how to connect the Atlantic and the Pacific with a canal through narrow [[Central America]]. (The [[Panama Canal Railway|Panama Railroad]] opened in 1855.) The original proposal was for a [[Nicaragua canal|sea-level canal through what is today Nicaragua]], taking advantage of the relatively large [[Lake Nicaragua]]. [[History of the Nicaragua Canal|This canal has never been built in part because of political instability]], which scared off potential investors. It remains an active project (the geography has not changed), and in the 2010s Chinese involvement was developing.

[[File:Jungle and abandoned equipment (3607563265).jpg|thumb|Abandoned DeLesseps equipment, Panama jungle]]
The second choice for a Central American canal was a [[Panama Canal]]. The [[Suez Canal Company|De Lesseps]] company, which ran the [[Suez Canal]], first attempted to build a Panama Canal in the 1880s. The difficulty of the terrain and weather (rain) encountered caused the company to go bankrupt. High worker mortality from disease also discouraged further investment in the project. DeLesseps' abandoned [[Excavator|excavating equipment]] sits, isolated decaying machines, today tourist attractions.
[[File:Canals and Navigable Rivers of the United States and Canada.jpg|right|thumb|Map of canals and navigable rivers of the east coast of North America, as of 1905]]
Twenty years later, an expansionist United States, that just acquired colonies after defeating Spain in the 1898 [[Spanish–American War]], and whose Navy became more important, decided to reactivate the project. The United States and Colombia did not reach agreement on the terms of a canal treaty (see [[Hay–Herrán Treaty]]). Panama, which did not have (and still does not have) a land connection with the rest of Colombia, was already thinking of independence. In 1903 the United States, with support from Panamanians who expected the canal to provide substantial wages, revenues, and markets for local goods and services, [[separation of Panama from Colombia|took Panama province away from Colombia]], and set up a [[puppet state|puppet republic]] ([[Panama]]). Its currency, the [[Panamanian balboa|Balboa]] – a name that suggests the country began as a way to get from one hemisphere to the other – was a replica of the [[US dollar]]. The US dollar was and remains [[legal tender]] (used as currency). A US military zone, the [[Canal Zone]], {{convert|10|mi|km|order=flip}} wide, with US military stationed there ([[military bases|base]]s, 2 TV stations, channels 8 and 10, [[Post exchange|Px]]s, a [[High school (North America)|US-style high school]]), split Panama in half. The Canal – a major engineering project – was built. The US did not feel that conditions were stable enough to withdraw until 1979. The withdrawal from Panama contributed to President [[Jimmy Carter]]'s defeat in 1980.

===Modern uses===
[[File:Viewing man-made canals in the marsh in Louisiana, Barataria Basin.jpg|thumb|Canals can disrupt water circulation in marsh systems.]]
Large-scale ship canals such as the Panama Canal and Suez Canal continue to operate for cargo transportation, as do European barge canals. Due to [[globalization]], they are becoming increasingly important, resulting in expansion projects such as the [[Panama Canal expansion project]]. The expanded canal began commercial operation on 26 June 2016. The new set of locks allow transit of larger, [[Post-Panamax]] and [[New Panamax]] ships.<ref name=NYT062016>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/06/26/world/americas/ap-lt-panama-canal-expansion.html?ref=world&_r=0 | title=Panama Canal Opens $5B Locks, Bullish Despite Shipping Woes | agency=Associated Press | work=[[The New York Times]] | date=26 June 2016 | access-date=26 June 2016}}</ref>

The narrow early industrial canals, however, have ceased to carry significant amounts of trade and many have been abandoned to navigation, but may still be used as a system for transportation of untreated water. In some cases railways have been built along the canal route, an example being the [[Croydon Canal]].

A movement that began in Britain and France to use the early industrial canals for pleasure boats, such as [[hotel barge]]s, has spurred rehabilitation of stretches of historic canals. In some cases, abandoned canals such as the [[Kennet and Avon Canal]] have been restored and are now used by pleasure boaters. In Britain, canalside housing has also proven popular in recent years.

The [[Seine–Nord Europe Canal]] is being developed into a major transportation waterway, linking [[France]] with [[Belgium]], [[Germany]], and the [[Netherlands]].

Canals have found another use in the 21st century, as [[easement]]s for the installation of [[fibre optic]] [[telecommunications]] network cabling, avoiding having them buried in roadways while facilitating access and reducing the hazard of being damaged from digging equipment.

Canals are still used to provide water for agriculture. An extensive canal system exists within the [[Imperial Valley]] in the Southern California desert to provide irrigation to agriculture within the area.

==Cities on water==
[[File:Herengracht tussen Beulingstraat en Koningsplein pic1.JPG|thumb|A canal ([[Gracht]]) in [[Amsterdam]], Netherlands]]
[[File:Griboyedov Canal 2.jpg|thumb|[[Griboyedov Canal]] in [[St. Petersburg]], Russia]]
[[File:Goldcoast Queensland Australia aerial view.jpg|right|thumb|Aerial view of the man-made canals of the [[Gold Coast, Queensland]], Australia]]
[[File:Utrecht Canals - July 2006.jpg|thumb|Wharfs along the [[Oudegracht]] in [[Utrecht]], Netherlands]]
Canals are so deeply identified with [[Venice]] that many canal cities have been nicknamed ''"the Venice of…"''. The city is built on marshy islands, with wooden piles supporting the buildings, so that the land is man-made rather than the waterways. The islands have a long history of settlement; by the 12th century, Venice was a powerful [[city state]].

[[Amsterdam]] was built in a similar way, with buildings on wooden piles. It became a city around 1300. Many Amsterdam canals were built as part of fortifications. They became ''[[gracht]]en'' when the city was enlarged and houses were built alongside the water. Its nickname as the "Venice of the North" is shared with [[Hamburg]] of Germany, [[St. Petersburg]] of Russia and [[Bruges]] of Belgium.

[[Suzhou, Jiangsu|Suzhou]] was dubbed the "Venice of the East" by Marco Polo during his travels there in the 13th century, with its modern canalside [[Pingjiang Road]] and [[Shantang Street]] becoming major tourist attractions. Other nearby cities including [[Nanjing]], [[Shanghai]], [[Wuxi]], [[Jiaxing]], [[Huzhou]], [[Nantong]], [[Taizhou, Jiangsu|Taizhou]], [[Yangzhou]], and [[Changzhou]] are located along the lower mouth of the [[Yangtze River]] and [[Lake Tai]], yet another source of small rivers and creeks, which have been canalized and developed for centuries.

[[File:Quai Maréchal de Lattre de Tassigny, Sète 02.jpg|thumb|Canal of La Peyrade in [[Sète]], France]]

Other cities with extensive canal networks include: [[Alkmaar]], [[Amersfoort]], [[Bolsward]], [[Brielle]], [[Delft]], [[Den Bosch]], [[Dokkum]], [[Dordrecht]], [[Enkhuizen]], [[Franeker]], [[Gouda, South Holland|Gouda]], [[Haarlem]], [[Harlingen, Netherlands|Harlingen]], [[Leeuwarden]], [[Leiden]], [[Sneek]] and [[Utrecht]] in the Netherlands; [[Bruges|Brugge]] and [[Ghent|Gent]] in Flanders, Belgium; [[Birmingham]] in England; [[Saint Petersburg]] in Russia; [[Bydgoszcz]], [[Gdańsk]], [[Szczecin]] and [[Wrocław]] in Poland; [[Aveiro, Portugal|Aveiro]] in Portugal; [[Hamburg]] and [[Berlin]] in Germany; [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]] and [[Cape Coral, Florida|Cape Coral]] in [[Florida]], United States, [[Wenzhou]] in China, [[Cần Thơ]] in Vietnam, [[Bangkok]] in Thailand, and [[Lahore]] in Pakistan.

[[Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City]] was a [[World Heritage Site|UNESCO World Heritage Site]] near the centre of [[Liverpool]], England, where a system of intertwining waterways and docks is now being developed for mainly residential and leisure use.

[[Canal estate]]s (sometimes known as bayous in the United States) are a form of [[Subdivision (land)|subdivision]] popular in cities like [[Miami]], [[Texas City, Texas]] and the [[Gold Coast, Queensland]]; the Gold Coast has over {{cvt|890|km|mi}} of residential canals. [[Wetlands]] are difficult areas upon which to build housing estates, so [[dredging]] part of the wetland down to a [[Navigability|navigable]] channel provides fill to build up another part of the wetland above the flood level for houses. Land is built up in a finger pattern that provides a suburban street layout of waterfront housing blocks.

==Boats==
[[File:Panama Canal Miraflores Locks.jpg|thumb|Two [[Panamax]] ships in the [[Miraflores (Panama)|Miraflores Locks]] on the [[Panama Canal]], [[Panama]]]]
Inland canals have often had boats specifically built for them. An example of this is the British [[narrowboat]], which is up to {{convert|72|ft|m|order=flip}} long and {{convert|7|ft|m|order=flip}} wide and was primarily built for British Midland canals. In this case the limiting factor was the size of the locks. This is also the limiting factor on the Panama canal where [[Panamax]] ships were limited to a length of {{convert|289.56|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} and a beam of {{convert|32.31|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} until 26 June 2016 when the opening of larger locks allowed for the passage of larger New Panamax ships. For the lockless Suez Canal the limiting factor for [[Suezmax]] ships is generally draft, which is limited to {{convert|16|m|ft|1|abbr=on}}. At the other end of the scale, tub-boat canals such as the [[Bude Canal]] were limited to boats of under 10 tons for much of their length due to the capacity of their inclined planes or boat lifts. Most canals have a limit on height imposed either by bridges or by tunnels.

==Lists of canals==
{{main|Lists of waterways}}

*'''Africa'''
** [[Bahr Yussef]]
** [[El Salam Canal]] ([[Egypt]])
** [[Ibrahimiya Canal]] (Egypt)
** [[Mahmoudiyah Canal]] (Egypt)
** [[Suez Canal]] (Egypt)
*'''Asia'''
** see [[List of canals in India]]
** see [[List of canals in Pakistan]]
** see [[History of canals in China]]
** [[King Abdullah Canal]] ([[Jordan]])
** [[Qanat al-Jaish]] ([[Iraq]])
* '''Europe'''
** [[Danube–Black Sea Canal]] ([[Romania]])
** [[North Crimean Canal]] ([[Ukraine]])
** [[List of canals in France|Canals of France]]
** [[Canals of Amsterdam]]
** [[List of canals in Germany|Canals of Germany]]
** [[Canals of Ireland]]
** [[List of canals in Russia|Canals of Russia]]
** [[Canals of the United Kingdom]]
*** [[List of canals in the United Kingdom]]
** [[Great Bačka Canal]] ([[Serbia]])
* '''North America'''
** [[Canals of Canada]]
** [[List of canals in the United States|Canals of the United States]]
** [[Panama Canal]]

==Lists of proposed canals==
{{See also|Ship canal}}
* [[Eurasia Canal]]
* [[Istanbul Canal]]
* [[Nicaragua Canal]]
* [[Salwa Canal]]
* [[Thai Canal]]
* [[Sulawesi Canal]]
* [[Two Seas Canal]]
* [[Northern river reversal]]
* [[Balkan Canal]] or Danube–Morava–Vardar–Aegean Canal
* [[Iranrud]]

==See also==
{{Portal|United Kingdom|Transport|Water}}
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Beaver]], a non-human animal also known for canal building
* [[Boat lift|Canal elevator]]
* ''[[Calle canal]]''
* [[Canal & River Trust]]
* [[Canal tunnel]]
* [[Environment Agency]]
* [[Horse-drawn boat]]
* [[Irrigation district]]
* [[Lists of canals]]
* [[List of navigation authorities in the United Kingdom]]
* [[List of waterways]]
* [[List of waterway societies in the United Kingdom]]
* [[Mooring]]
* [[Navigation authority]]
* [[:Category:Proposed canals|Proposed canals]]
* [[Vindobona#Roman canals|Roman canals]] – (''[[Torksey]]'')
* [[Volumetric flow rate]]
* [[Water bridge]]
* [[British Waterways#Waterscape|Waterscape]]
* [[Water transportation]]
* [[Waterway restoration]]
* [[Waterways in the United Kingdom]]
* [[Weigh lock]]
{{div col end}}

==References==

===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* {{Citation | first = Roger | last = Calvert | title = Inland Waterways of Europe | journal = The Geographical Journal | publisher=George Allen and Unwin | year = 1963 | volume = 129 | issue = 4 | page = 515 | doi = 10.2307/1794678 | jstor = 1794678 | bibcode = 1963GeogJ.129..515A }}
* {{Citation | first = David | last = Edwards-May | title = European Waterways - map and concise directory, 3rd edition | publisher = Euromapping | year = 2008 }}
* {{Citation | first = Charles | last = Hadfield | author-link = Charles Hadfield (historian) | title = World Canals: Inland Navigation Past and Present | publisher = David and Charles | year = 1986 | isbn = 978-0-7153-8555-5 }}
* {{Citation | first = J. | last = Needham | title = Science and Civilisation in China | publisher = C.U.P. Cambridge | year = 1971 }}
* {{Citation | first = J.C. | last = Rodda | title = The Basis of Civilization - Water Science? | publisher = International Association of Hydrological Sciences | year = 2004 }}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{EB1911 poster|Canal}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [http://www.waterscape.com/ British Waterways' leisure website – Britain's official guide to canals, rivers and lakes]
* [http://www.towpathtreks.co.uk/ Leeds Liverpool Canal Photographic Guide]
* [https://www.nycanals.com/ Information and Boater's Guide to the New York State Canal System] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724103315/http://www.nycanals.com/ |date=24 July 2008 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110719194715/http://academic.emporia.edu/aberjame/wetland/canal/canals.htm "Canals and Navigable Rivers" by James S. Aber, Emporia State University]
* [https://canals.org/ National Canal Museum (US)]
* [https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/ London Canal Museum (UK)]
* [http://www.world-city-photos.org/Amsterdam/photos/Canals_and_Bridges/ Canals in Amsterdam] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914101104/http://www.world-city-photos.org/Amsterdam/photos/Canals_and_Bridges/ |date=14 September 2008 }}
* [http://www.canaldumidi.com Canal du Midi]
* [http://www.canaldumidi.com/Canal-des-Deux-Mers.php Canal des Deux Mers]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070717234045/http://www.usbr.gov/pmts/hydraulics_lab/water/bubbler/index.htm Canal flow measurement using a sensor].
* {{Cite NIE|wstitle=Canal|short=x}}

{{Infrastructure}}
{{Rivers, streams and springs}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Canals| ]]
[[Category:Coastal construction]]
[[Category:Water transport infrastructure]]
[[Category:Artificial bodies of water]]
[[Category:Infrastructure]]