Origins of the name and location

The word Avon means river. Compare it to the Welsh word for river “Afon” and you immediately see where it came from. The UK has several river Avons and to distinguish between them they are often referred to by the counties or cities that they pass through. The Bristol Avon rises on the Eastern side of the Cotswold Hills as several small sources, these all come together to form one river around Malmesbury in Northern Wiltshire. From Malmesbury the river flows generally southward through Wiltshire and gradually turns westward into the county of Somerset and the city of Bath. Here it meets the Western end of the Kennet and Avon canal, and becomes navigable to motorized craft downstream into Bristol docks. It finally meets the Bristol Channel at the aptly named town of Avonmouth.