river flowing from E Colo. east & southeast through Nebr. & Kans., joining the Smoky Hill River to form the Kansas River: 445 mi (716 km)
Origin:
after the “Republican Pawnees,” so called from their form of government
See Republican River in American Heritage Dictionary 4
A river, about 676 km (420 mi) long, rising in eastern Colorado and flowing northeast and east across southern Nebraska then southeast through northeast-central Kansas, where it joins the Smoky Hill River to form the Kansas River.