The Neman, Nemunas, Nyoman, Niemen or Memel is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon, and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipėda. It begins at the confluence of two smaller tributaries (map coordinates 53.348194,27.108378), about 15 kilometers (9 mi) southwest of the town of Uzda in central Belarus, and about 55 km (34 mi) southwest of Minsk.