Rivers in China

About the Rivers of China

The 67 rivers above with an encyclopedia article, in brief. Each name opens the river's full page, with its course on the map.

Amur

The Amur River or Heilong River is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China. The Amur proper is 2,824 km long, and has a drainage basin of 1,855,000 km2. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Bei

The Bei or North River, also known by its Chinese name as the Beijiang or Bei Jiang, is the northern tributary of the Pearl River in southern China. The other two main tributaries of the Pearl River are the western Xi Jiang and the eastern Dong Jiang. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Da

The Black River, also known upstream as the Lixian River in China, is a river located in China and northwestern Vietnam. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Dadu

The Dadu River, known in Tibetan as the Gyelmo Ngul Chu, is a major river located primarily in Sichuan province, southwestern China. The Dadu flows from the eastern Tibetan Plateau into the Sichuan Basin where it joins with the Min River, a tributary of the Yangtze River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Daling

The Daling River is a river in Northeast China. With a length of 435 kilometres, it is the main river in the arid western part of Liaoning. Its drainage basin covers 23,837 square kilometres, 85% of which is located in Liaoning, 13% in Inner Mongolia and the remaining 2% in Hebei. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Duliu

The Liu River is a tributary within the Pearl River system in Guangxi, China. It is formed by the confluence of the Rong and Long rivers in Fengshan. It flows south through Liuzhou and then the Luoqing Jiang enters from the north. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Fen

The Fen River drains the center of Shanxi Province, China. It originates in the Guancen Mountains of Ningwu County in northeast Shanxi, flows southeast into the basin of Taiyuan, and then south through the central valley of Shanxi before turning west to join the Yellow River west of Hejin. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Fuchun

The Qiantang River, formerly known as the Hangchow River or Tsientang River, is a river in East China. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Gan

The Gan River runs north through the western part of Jiangxi before flowing into Lake Poyang and thus the Yangtze River. The Xiang-Gan uplands separate it from the Xiang River of neighboring eastern Hunan. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ganges

The Ganges is a trans-boundary river of Asia which flows through India and Bangladesh. The 2,525-kilometre-long river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ghaghara

The Ghaghara River, also known as the Karnali River in Nepal, Mapcha Tsangpo in Tibet, and as the Sarayu River in the lower Ghaghara of India's Awadh, is a perennial trans-boundary river that originates in the northern slopes of the Himalayas in the Tibetan Plateau, cuts through the Himalayas in Nepal and joins the Sharda River at Brahmaghat in India. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Hai

The Hai River, also known as the Peiho, Pei Ho, or Hai Ho, is a Chinese river in Tianjin emptying into the Bohai Sea. Its drainage basin covers most of Hebei, Beijing, and Tianjin, as well as parts of Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Henan, and Shandong. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Hailar

The Argun or Ergune is a 1,620-kilometre long river that forms part of the eastern China–Russia border, together with the Amur. Its upper reaches are known as the Hailar River in China. The Argun marks the border between Russia and China for about 944 kilometres, until it meets the Amur. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Herlen

Kherlen River is a 1,254 km river in Mongolia and China. It is also one of the two longest rivers in Mongolia, along with the Orkhon River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Hong

The Red River or the Hong River, also known as the Sông Cái in Vietnamese and the Yuan River in Chinese, is a 1,149-kilometer-long river that flows from Yunnan in Southwest China through northern Vietnam to the Gulf of Tonkin. According to C. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Hongshui

The Hongshui River is a major river in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in Southern China. It is one of the main rivers in the basin of the Xi River, which in its turn is one of the main tributaries of the Pearl River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Huai

The Huai River, formerly romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in East China, about 1,110 km long with a drainage area of 174,000 km2. It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze River, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins in China. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Indus River

The Indus is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Jialing

The Jialing River, formerly known by numerous other names, is a major tributary of the Yangtze River in the Sichuan Basin. It is named after the Jialing Valley in Feng County, Shaanxi through which it flows. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Jing

The Jing River or Jing He, also called Jing Shui, is a tributary of the Wei River, which in turn is the largest tributary of the Yellow River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Jinsha

The Jinsha River is the Chinese name for the upper stretches of the Yangtze River. It flows through the provinces of Qinghai, Sichuan, and Yunnan in western China. The river passes through Tiger Leaping Gorge. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Jiulong

The Jiulong River, formerly known as the Longjiang or Zhangjiang, is the largest river in southern Fujian and the second largest in the province. It has a length of 258 kilometers and a basin of 14,700 square kilometers. Like all Fujianese rivers but one, it flows into the Taiwan Strait. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Konqi

Konqi River, also transliterated as Kongque River, is a river in Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China. It is one of the tributaries of the Tarim River system. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Künes

The Künes River, generally known in English as the Kunges River, is—with the Tekes River—one of the two main tributaries that form the Ili River in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. It originates in the eastern Tian Shan. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Liao

The Liao River is the principal river in southern Northeast China, and one of the seven main river systems in China. Its name is derived from the Liao region, a historical name for southern Manchuria, from which the Liaoning province, Liaodong Peninsula, and Liao dynasty also derive their names. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Maquan

Maquan River or Dangque Zangbu is the upper section of Yarlung Tsangpo. It is located in the Tibet Autonomous Region, in the southwestern part of the country, about 670 km west of the regional capital Lhasa. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Mei

The Mei River is a river in Meizhou City in the eastern part of the Guangdong province in southern China and a tributary of the Han River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Mekong

The Mekong or Mekong River is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth-longest river and the third-longest in Asia with an estimated length of 4,909 km and a drainage area of 795,000 km2, discharging 475 km3 of water annually. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Muling

The Muling or Muren is a river in Northeast China, a left tributary of the Ussuri. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nanpan

The Nanpan River has its source in the Yungui Plateau of eastern Yunnan Province. It then flows east, forming part of the border between Guizhou and Guangxi provinces. It joins with the Beipan River to become the Hongshui River. It is roughly 950 km long. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nemor

The Nemor River, sometimes spelled Nemo'er River, also known as Nemoer River, Namoer River, is a river located in the north-central part of Heilongjiang Province of the People's Republic of China. It is a tributary of the left bank of the Nen River, and is a seasonal river. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nen

The Nen River or Nenjiang, or Nonni is a river in Northeast China. The Nen River flows through the northern part of Heilongjiang Province and the northeastern section of Inner Mongolia, some parts of the river forming the border between the two regions. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nmai

The N'Mai River or N'Mai Hka is a river in northern Myanmar. The northern part of the river is sometimes referred to as the Nam Tamai. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Qarqan

The Qiemo River, also called the Cherchen or Qarqan River, runs across the Tarim Basin in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. It feeds into the Lop Nor salty marshes and the Taitema Lake. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Quan (near Luohe)

The Quan River is a major river in Henan province of China. It is the largest tributary of the Ying River which is a part of the Huai River watershed system. Its total length is about 241 km, 120 km of which in the upstream section is also called Fen River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sanggan

The Sanggan River or Sanggan He, also known in English as Sangkan River, is a river in northern China. It runs 506 kilometers and has a drainage area of 23,900 square kilometers. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Shiquan

Sengge Zangbo, Sengge Khabab or Shiquan He is a river in the Ngari Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China that is the source stream of the Indus River, one of the major trans-Himalayan rivers of Central and South Asia. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Song’acha

The Sungacha or Songacha is a river marking part of the border between the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China. It is a left tributary of the Ussuri, and the only outflow of Khanka Lake. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Songhua

The Songhua or Sunghwa River is one of the primary rivers of China, and the longest tributary of the Amur. It flows about 1,897 km from Changbai Mountains on the China–North Korea border through China's northeastern Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sutlej

The Sutlej River or the Satluj River is a major river in Asia, flowing through China, India and Pakistan, and is the longest of the five major rivers of the Punjab region. It is also known as Satadru; and is the easternmost tributary of the Indus River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Tarim

The Tarim River, known in Sanskrit as the Śītā, is an endorheic river in Xinjiang, China. It is the principal river of the Tarim Basin, a desert region of Central Asia between the Tian Shan and Kunlun Mountains. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Tongtian

The Tongtian River or Zhi Qu is a 1,012 km long river in Qinghai Province in western China. It begins at the confluence of the Ulan Moron and Dangqu rivers, before flowing southeast and meeting the Jinsha River near the border of Qinghai and Sichuan. It is part of the Yangtze River drainage basin. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Toxkan

The Toshkan is a river in the Tien Shan mountains in the border area between China and Kyrgyzstan. It is 345 kilometres long, and has a drainage basin of 8,270 square kilometres in Kyrgyzstan. The Toshkan has its sources in the At-Bashy Range and Kakshaal Too south of the Kyrgyzstani city of Naryn. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Tumen

The Tumen River, also known as the Tuman River or Duman River, is a 521-kilometre long river that serves as part of the boundary between China, North Korea and Russia, rising on the slopes of Mount Paektu and flowing into the Sea of Japan. The river has a drainage basin of 33,800 km2. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Tuo

The Tuo River is 655-kilometer-long river in Sichuan province of southern China. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Tuotuo

The Ulan Moron, Mar Qu, or Tuotuo River is the second longest source of the Yangtze River after Dangqu River, with a total length of 361.4 km long, located in Qinghai province in the People's Republic of China. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ussuri

The Ussuri or Wusuli is a river that runs through Khabarovsk and Primorsky Krais, Russia and the southeast region of Northeast China in the province of Heilongjiang. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Wei

The Wei River is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization. In ancient times, such as in the Records of the Grand Historian, the river was called Wei Shui. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Wuding

The Wuding River begins in the Ordos Desert in Shaanxi Province, Inner Mongolia and flows south into loess canyons and farmland. After around 160 kilometres it flows into the great Yellow River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Wujia

The Wujia River is a river in the Inner Mongolia of the People's Republic of China, located in the northern part of the river-loop plain in western Inner Mongolia. The ancient Yellow River in the Hetao region is the current Wujia River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Xar Moron

The Xar Moron river is a river in Inner Mongolia, in northeast China. It flows through the grasslands of that region, forming a valley that is hospitable to both farming and herding. The valley was once home to the Khitan people. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Xi

The Xi River or Si-Kiang is the western tributary of the Pearl River in southern China. It is formed by the confluence of the Gui and Xun Rivers in Wuzhou, Guangxi. It originates from the eastern foot of the Maxiong Mountain in Qujing City, Yunnan Province. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Xiang

The Xiang River is the chief river of the Lake Dongting drainage system of the middle Yangtze, the largest river in Hunan Province, China. It is the second-largest tributary in terms of surface runoff, the fifth-largest tributary by drainage area of the Yangtze tributaries. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Xiliao

The Xiliao or West Liao River is a river in Inner Mongolia and Liaoning province, in northeast China. Its source is the Xilamulun River in Inner Mongolia. It is one of the headwaters of the Liao River. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Xun

The Xun River is a short section of the main branch of the Pearl River system upstream from the Xi Jiang in China. Although less than 200 km long, it is of considerable importance in Guangxi Province as it drains the majority of the province. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yalong

The Yalong River, or Nyag Chu, is a major tributary river of the Yangtze River in Southwest China. With a length of 1,597 km, the Yalong River flows from north to south through the Hengduan Mountains in western Sichuan Province. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yalu

The Yalu River or Amnok River is a river on the border between China and North Korea. Together with the Tumen River to its east, and a small portion of Paektu Mountain, the Yalu forms the border between China and North Korea. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yangtze

The Yangtze River, Yangzi River or Chang Jiang is the longest river in China and the third-longest river in the world. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yarkant

The Yarkand River is a river in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of western China. It originates in the Siachen Muztagh in a part of the Karakoram range and flows into the Tarim River, with which it is sometimes identified. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yellow River

The Yellow River, also known as Huang he, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world, with an estimated length of 5,464 km and a drainage basin of 795,000 km2. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ying

The Ying River is the largest tributary of the Huai River with its origin in Henan Province, People's Republic of China. From Zhoukou City in Henan, the river flows through Fuyang City in Anhui Province then empties into the Huai River at Shouxian. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yongding

The Yongding River is a river in northern China. It is one of the main tributaries in the Hai River system and is the largest river to flow through Beijing. In recent years, the Beijing segment of the river has dried up due to environmental issues. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yuan

The Yuan River, also known by its Chinese name as the Yuanjiang, is one of the four largest rivers in Hunan province in southeast-central China. It is a tributary of Yangtze River. It is 864 kilometres long and rises in Guizhou province in the Miao Mountains near Duyun and is navigable. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yurungkax

The White Jade River is a river in southern Xinjiang, China. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Zayü

The Lohit River, also known as the Zayul Chu by the Tibetans, is a river in Tibet and India, which joins the Brahmaputra River in the state of Assam. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Zhang

The Zhang River is a tributary of the Wei River in China. The river commences at the confluence of the rivers Qingzhang and Zhuozhang, where between She county of Hebei and Linzhou of Henan, then joins the Wei River in Guantao county, Hebei. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Zuo

The Zuo River is a river of Guangxi, China. It begins from the confluence of the Bằng River and Kỳ Cùng River near Longzhou and joins the You River near Nanning to form the Yong River. These rivers form part of the Pearl River system, which flows into the South China Sea near Guangzhou. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)