Nile 6,650 km (4,132 miles): The Nile River, located in northeastern Africa, is the chief source of water in Egypt and Sudan. Its water resources are shared by eleven countries in Africa including Tanzania, Kenya, Egypt, and Sudan. Owing to this, the Nile is an international river. Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and more countries have complained about the domination of Egypt on the Nile waters. To promote peaceful cooperation among these countries, the Nile Basin Initiative was created. The Nile River has two major tributaries, the White Nile and the Blue Nile. The White Nile is the primary source and the Blue Nile is the secondary source of the Nile River. Most of the historical sites of Ancient Egypt are located along the banks of the Nile, including Luxor, Aswan and Giza. The source of the Nile was a mystery for many centuries. The Egypt has minimal rainfalls, therefore the people are dependent on yearly floods caused by heavy rainfalls that provides thick rich mud for cultivating crops.


Amazon 6,400 km (3,976 miles): The Amazon River, flowing in South America into the Atlantic, has the largest drainage basin in the world. It is also the second widest river in the world. In the upper stretches, above its meeting with the Rio Negro, the river is called Solimoes in Brazil. In Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and the remaining Spanish-speaking world the river is called Amazon. The Amazon Rainforest is the richest tropical forest in the world in terms of biodiversity. More than one-third of all known species reside in this giant forest. Interestingly, there are no bridges to cross over the river. That’s because most of the river flows through rainforests and not roads or cities. The river discharges 8 trillion of water. The Amazon ecosystem is stated as ‘larger than life’ and most expansive rainforest in the world. Amazon second largest river pours nearly 12,540,000 cubic meter water every minute.


Yangtze 6,300 km (3,917 miles): In China, the Yangtze River is called Chang Jiang (meaning ‘long river’) or the Yangzi. It is the longest river in Asia and the longest river to flow entirely within one country. The Yangtze’s source is the Geladaindong Peak. The river plays an important and large role in the history, culture and economy of China. The Yangtze River is habitat to the Chinese Alligator and serves as a dividing line between North and South China. The Three Gorges Dam on this river is the largest hydroelectric power producer in the world. However, in recent years, the Yangtze has suffered from industrial revolution, agricultural run-off, siltation and loss of wetlands and lakes.


Yangtze river discharges over 30,000 cubic meters, thus making it the sixth largest river in the world by volume. The river Yangtze flows across Qinghai – Tibet Plateau, Yunnan, Sichuan, Hubei, Jiangsu and Shanghai.


Mississippi 6,275 km (3,902 miles): The River flows entirely in the US. The Mississippi River Valley is one of the most fertile agricultural regions of the country. It is formed from thick layers of the river’s silt deposits. The river’s source is Lake Itasca. The Mississippi River first served as a barrier. It formed borders for New Spain, New France and the early US. Then it served as a major transportation artery and communications link. The River’s name is derived from the Native American Chippewa tribe’s mici zibi, meaning ‘great river’.




The most famous tributary of the Mississippi is the Missouri. The Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers together form the longest river system in the North America and the USA. The deepest spot of this river is in New Orleans near Algiers Point.


Yenisei 5,539km (3,445 miles): The Yenisei River, flowing in Mongolia and Russia, is the largest river system flowing to the Arctic Ocean. It is also written as Yenisey. The river is the central of the three great Siberian Rivers-the other two being the Ob and the Lena-flowing into the Arctic Ocean. During World War II, Nazi Germany and the Japanese Empire agreed to divide Asia along a line that followed the course of the Yenisei River to the border of China, and then along the border of China and the Soviet Union. Hydroelectric dams, like the Krasnoyarsk Dam, control the middle part of the Yenisei River. The Yenisei river tributaries are the Angara River, Lower Tunguska, and the Tunguska river. The banks of Yenisei were occupied by the nomadic tribes like the Yugh people, the Ket and the Kotts.


Yellow River 5,464km (3,395 miles): This River, flowing in China, is also called the Huang He and is believed to be the birthplace of ancient Chinese civilization. It was also the most prosperous region in early Chinese history. While this river was called the ‘cradle of Chinese civilizations’, it was also responsible for devastating floods. The reason for the floods is the fine-grained loess (silt) it carries. The River is called yellow due to the lemon-colored silt it gathers from the Loess Plateau. Yellow river flows around 5,464 km before it meets the Bohai Sea. This rivers is the second largest river in China and quite sluggish in its course. It is also the most muddiest major river as it discharges sediments three times than the Mississippi River.


Ob 5,410km (3,364 miles): The Ob River, also called Obi, flows in Russia and western Siberia. The world’s longest estuary is the Gulf of Ob. The Ob River is mainly used for irrigation, drinking water, hydroelectric energy and fishing. The Katun river feeds the Ob. The Ob rivers is formed from the junction of Katun and Biyan and futher connected by the Tom River.


Parana 4,880km (3,030 miles): The Parana River, located in South America, is highly navigable and helps to connect inland cities to the ocean. It also provides deep water ports  The River runs through Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay. Its name is an abbreviation of the phrase ‘para rehe onava’ coming from the Tupi language. It means ‘like the sea’ or ‘as big as the sea’. The Parana River Delta is one of the world’s greatest bird watching destinations. The Parana river basin is longest and ranges about 1,081,000 square miles.


Congo 4,700km (2,922 miles): Also called Zaire River, it is the deepest river in the world with depth of 230 meters. The Congo River in Africa got its name from the Kingdom of Kongo. The River along with its tributaries flow through the Congo Rainforest, which is the second largest rainforest in the world, behind the Amazon Rainforest. The Congo River, being the most powerful river in Africa, has great potential to be used for hydroelectric power. The source of this rivers is in the highlands and mountains of the East African Rift such as Tanganyika and Lake Mweru.


Amur 4,444km (2,763 miles): The Amur River is called Heilong Jiang or ‘black dragon river’ in Chinese. It forms the border between the Russian Far East and Northeastern China. Flowing in China and Russia, the Amur River is an important symbol of Sino-Russian relations. The region surrounding the Amur is home to various endangered species like the Amur leopard. The Amur river is formed by the junction of two rivers namely – Shilka River and the Argun River. The drainage basin of Amur river is nearly 1,844,000 sq km, thus making this river the 10th largest river in the world.