Lake Neuchâtel (; ) is a
lake primarily in
Romandy,
Switzerland (French-speaking Switzerland). The lake lies mainly in the
canton of
Neuchâtel, but is also shared by the cantons of
Vaud, of
Fribourg, and of
Bern. With a surface of 218.3 km², it is the largest lake entirely in Switzerland and the 59th largest lake in Europe. Lake Neuchâtel lies approximately at coordinates . It is 38.3 km long and no more than 8.2 km wide. Its surface is 429 m above sea-level, with a maximum depth of 152 m. The total water volume is 14.0 km³. The lake's drainage area is approximately 2,670 km² and its culminating point is
Le Chasseron at 1,607 m. The lake receives the Orbe River (called
Thielle or Thièle from the city of Orbe onwards), the Arnon, the Areuse (which traverses the
Val de Travers),
Seyon (flowing through the
Val de Ruz), the
canal de la Sauge (which drains
Lake Murten and receives the
Broye River), and the Mentue (at
Yvonand). The
canal of Thielle (or
Zihlkanal in German) drains the lake into
Lake Biel-Bienne and is part of regulation system for the lakes and the rivers of the
Seeland region. Lake Neuchâtel was the home of the now
extinct species of deepwater trout
Salvelinus neocomensis.