Danube once appears as the mother of Vrtra, "a dragon blocking the course of the rivers." The Finnish word for Danube is Tonava, which is most likely derived from the word for the river in Swedish and German, "Donau". Its Sámi name "Deatnu" means "Great River". It is possible that "dānu" in Scythian as in Avestan was a generic word for "river": "Dnieper" and "Dniestr", from "Danapris" and "Danastius", are presumed to continue Scythian "*dānu apara" "far river" and "*dānu nazdya-" "near river", respectively. The river was known to the ancient Greeks as the "Istros" (Ἴστρος) a borrowing from a Daco-Thracian
International Association for Danube Research in the discussion and development of the “Guiding principles on sustainable hydropower development in the Danube Basin” and made major contributions concerning the ecological connectivity of the aquatic ecosystems and the classification of sensitive ecological areas. IAD members are active in the Danube Sturgeon Task Force and also are involved in a number of EU and its "EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR)" project initiatives. The DSTF aims to coordinate and foster the conservation of native sturgeon species in the Danube River Basin and the adjacent Black Sea by the implementation of the Sturgeon Action Plan adopted under the