| Irrawaddy River ဧရာဝတီမြစ် | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of the river | |
 Course, watershed, cities and major tributaries of the Irrawaddy River | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | Myanmar |
| States/Regions | |
| Cities | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Ridong Qu headwaters, southeast Tibet, China: The geographical source.[1] |
| • coordinates | 28°44′04″N 97°52′21″E / 28.73444°N 97.87250°E |
| • elevation | 4760 m (approximately) |
| 2nd source | |
| • location | Gada Qu headwaters, southeast Tibet, China: The northernmost source. |
| • coordinates | 28°45′57″N 97°45′1″E / 28.76583°N 97.75028°E (approximately) |
| • elevation | 4760 m (approximately) |
| 3rd source | N'Mai River[3] |
| • location | Kachin State, Myanmar |
| • coordinates | 28°31′50″N 97°37′55″E / 28.53056°N 97.63194°E (approximately) |
| • elevation | 4650 m (approximately) |
| 4th source | Mali River |
| • location | Kachin State, Myanmar |
| • coordinates | 27°44′48″N 97°2′5″E / 27.74667°N 97.03472°E (approximately) |
| • elevation | 3800 m (approximately) |
| Source confluence | |
| • location | Damphet, Kachin State |
| • coordinates | 25°42′0″N 97°30′0″E / 25.70000°N 97.50000°E |
| • elevation | 147 m (482 ft) |
| Mouth | Andaman Sea |
• location | Ale-ywa, Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar |
• coordinates | 15°51′19″N 95°14′27″E / 15.85528°N 95.24083°E |
• elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Length | 2,288 km (1,422 mi)[1] |
| Basin size | 404,200 km2 (156,100 sq mi)[4] |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Irrawaddy Delta |
| • average | 15,112 m3/s (533,700 cu ft/s)[2] |
| • minimum | 2,300 m3/s (81,000 cu ft/s) |
| • maximum | 60,000 m3/s (2,100,000 cu ft/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Chindwin River, Mu River |
| • right | Myitnge |
| Second longest source length: Kaidag Qu/Gadag Qu: 48 km ⟶ Gyita Qu/Kelao Luo: 56 km ⟶ Dulong River: 182 km ⟶ N Mai Kha River: 231 km ⟶ Irrawaddy River: 2,210 km ⟶ Andaman Sea: Total: 2,727 km Longest source length: Quwa Qu/Ridong Ermei ⟶ Gyita Qu/Kelao Luo: 56 km ⟶... | |
The Irrawaddy River (Burmese: ဧရာဝတီမြစ်, pronounced [ʔèjàwədì mjɪʔ], official romanisation: Ayeyarwady[5][note 1]) is the largest river in Myanmar. Originating from the confluence of the N'mai and Mali rivers,[7] it flows from north to south before emptying through the Irrawaddy Delta in the Ayeyarwady Region into the Andaman Sea. Its drainage basin of about 404,000 square kilometres (156,000 sq mi) covers 61% of the land area of Burma, and contains five of its largest cities.[8]
As early as the sixth century, the river was used for trade and transport, and an extensive network of irrigation canals was developed to support agriculture. The river is still of great importance as the largest commercial waterway of Myanmar.[9] It also provides important ecosystem services to different communities and economic sectors, including agriculture, fisheries, and tourism.[8]
In 2007, Myanmar's military dictatorship signed an agreement for the construction of seven hydroelectric dams, yielding a total of 13,360 MW, in the N'mai and Mali Rivers, including the 3600 MW Myitsone Dam at the confluence of both rivers. Environmental organisations have raised concerns about the project's ecological impact on the river's biodiverse ecosystems. Animals potentially impacted include the endangered Irrawaddy dolphin and the critically endangered Ganges shark.
- ^ a b Fei, Yu (22 August 2011). "中国科学家确定雅鲁藏布江等四条国际河流源头" [Chinese Scientists Verify Source of Four International Rivers, Including Yarlung Tsangpo]. Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). Retrieved 5 March 2021.
- ^ "Water Resources of Myanmar". AQUASTAT. Archived from the original on 27 July 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2010.
Adding the sections gives Irrawaddy a discharge of 476.9 cubic kilometers per year, which translates to 15,112 m3/s
- ^ James R Penn (2001) Rivers of the World Archived 11 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Santa Barbara, Calif. [u.a.] ABC-Clio ISBN 1-57607-042-5, ISBN 978-1-57607-042-0. Page 115 paragraph 2, retrieved July 16, 2009
- ^ Khon Ra, Director, Hydrology Branch, Irrigation Department (21 September 2011). "Water Quality Management at River Basin in Myanmar" (PDF). Water Environment Partnership in Asia (WEPA). The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
Catchment Area (000's sq-km) Chindwin River 115.30 Upper Ayeyarwady River 193.30 Lower Ayeyarwady River 95.60
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "WRITING SYSTEMS: ROMANIZATION Government of the Union of Myanmar Notification 5/89" (PDF). United Nation World Stats Forum. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
- ^ Ölmez, Mehmet (28 June 2019). "Etimoloji Sözlükleri Üzerine Kısa Bir Değerlendirme, Tanımı ve r-'li Yabancı Kelimelerin Türkçeye Giriş Yolları". Istanbul University Faculty of Letters Journal of Turkish Language and Literature. 59 (1): 121. doi:10.26650/tuded2019-0012. S2CID 198780156.
- ^ Scott, James George (1911). . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 14 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 839.
- ^ a b WWF (1 May 2018). The Ayeyarwady River and the Economy of Myanmar. WWF. ISBN 978-2-940443-06-2.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ "Irrawaddy River | Myanmar's Largest River, Wildlife & History | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
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