November 17, 1821 Tsunami: Black Sea, Romania
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.7 earthquake began at Black Sea, Romania on November 17, 1821 at 13:30 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.1 meters. Its effects were recorded at 1 place.
Where the waves reached
The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.
- Under 1 m
- 1 to 3 m
- 3 to 10 m
- 10 to 30 m
- 30 m and more
- Height not recorded
The tsunami
- Date
- November 17, 1821, 13:30 UTC
- Source
- Black Sea, Romania
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.7
- Maximum water height
- 0.1 m (0.3 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 45.700° N, 26.600° E
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
On November 17, 1821, an earthquake took place in the south of Russia. It continued for 40 sec in Odessa (now Ukraine). "The sea exceeded its standard level". (reference #4658)
1821 Nov 17. Probable tsunami. From Russian sources, Nikonov (1997a) listed the earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 6.7 ± 0.7 and an associated sea level disturbance: “Sea rose above the ordinary level near the town of Odessa by more than 10 cm; k=II.” (reference #9391)
1821 Nov 17. Improbable tsunami. Papadopoulos et al. (2011) (reference #9391) suggest two hypothesis to explain the wave generation at a so long distance from the seismic source: the first is that the epicenter is correctly placed and the sea disturbance was only a standing wave (seiche) caused by the seismic ground vibration. The second possibility is that the earthquake was not associated with the Vrancea seismic source, that the proposed epicenter is not correctly placed and that it should be shifted more to the North. The authors support this last hypothesis and say that the sea disturbance could be attributed equally either to a submarine slump or to a seiche. (reference #11164)
1821 Nov 17. Definite tsunami. (reference #12050)
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odessa | Ukraine | 331 | 0.1 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1821The 1800sTsunamis of RomaniaThe earthquakeThis day in weather historyAlerts in force
Sources
Tsunami events and runups from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI tsunami event 5842.