The Minnesota River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the state of Minnesota in the United States.
It rises in southwestern Minnesota, in Big Stone Lake on the Minnesota-South Dakota border. It flows southeast to Mankato, then turns northeast. It joins the Mississippi south of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, near the historic Fort Snelling.
Its name comes from the Dakota language mini meaning "water" and sota which is alternately translated "smoky-white" or "like the cloudy sky". Minnesota Territory, and later the state, were named for the river.
The Minnesota River was formed after the last ice age in North America.
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