The Yangtze River

The Yangtze River is also known as Changjiang River, or "Dajiang Riv-er" or "Jiang River" in ancient times.
The 6,380-kilometer-long Yangtze River is the longest river in China and the third longest in the world. Its total drainage area is more than 1,800,000 square kilometers, covering nearly one-fifth of the whole area in China.
The Yangtze River rises in the Tuotuo River which runs from the main peak of the Mount Tanggula in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The Yangtze River emerges from its place of origin, winding its way eastwards. In the area be-tween Baidicheng in Sichuan Province and Yichang in Hubei Province, it cuts across a vast mountain ridge, thus forming the magnificent Three Gorges. The section above Yichang is regarded as its upper reaches.
As the Yangtze River flows from Yichang into the plain area, it enters into its middle reaches. At the place where two other large water systems, Poyang Lake and Dongting Lake converge, the Yangtze River rises notably. It flows along its course of lower reaches immediately after Hukou in Jiangxi Province, becoming wider and deeper. Down below Jiangyin in Jiangsu Province a delta is formed. Finally the mighty Yangtze runs into the East Sea from Shanghai City.
Most of the drainage areas of the Changjiang River are cataloged as part of the subtropical zone. With the abundant rainfall in this zone, the flow of the main stream rises. Every year there are 10 thousand billion cubic meters of water flowing into the sea from the river mouth. That is 20 times as much as that of the Yellow River. The drop from the origin to the place where the riv-er flows into the sea is 5,100 meters.
With its tremendous depth and width, the Yangtze River makes possible a vital transportation line in the south of our country. It has long been called "Gold Waterway. " On its drainage area there are 40 million mus of land capa-ble of cultivation. The important industrial cities, such as Shanghai, Nanjing, Wuhan, etc. are located along its shores.