{"id":88175,"date":"2026-02-16T22:16:05","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T16:46:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=88175"},"modified":"2026-02-17T11:35:24","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T06:05:24","slug":"major-rivers-of-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/major-rivers-of-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Major Rivers of the World, List, Length, Origin, Tributaries"},"content":{"rendered":"

Major Rivers of the world is an important theme in the UPSC Prelims Exam. UPSC frequently tests candidates on river origins, courses, tributaries, drainage basins, and mouths, as well as rivers crossing important latitudes like the Equator, Tropic of Cancer, or Tropic of Capricorn.<\/span><\/p>\n

Major Rivers of the World<\/b><\/h2>\n

In UPSC Prelims, questions may ask for river-source pairs, drainage basins, countries through which rivers flow, tributary relationships, and their geographical significance. Therefore, a clear understanding of Major Rivers of the World continent-wise, along with quick facts like origin, mouth, and length, is crucial for scoring in the exam.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Major Rivers of the World<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00a0<\/td>\nName of the River<\/b><\/td>\nCharacteristics<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Major Rivers of North America\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Mississippi – Missouri River system\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Mississippi – Missouri River system is the <\/span>longest River System in North America.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Known for <\/span>Bird\u2019s Foot Delta.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Mississippi River rises in the <\/span>Lake Itasca, <\/b>USA<\/span><\/li>\n
  • The Missouri River rises in the <\/span>Rocky Mountains, <\/b>USA.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • The <\/span>Missouri River is the longest river in North America.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Missouri River is the tributary of the Mississippi River.<\/b> It joins Mississippi near St.Louis.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the Gulf of Mexico.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Rio Grande River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the San Juan Mountains in the United States (Colorado).<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It forms the <\/span>border between the USA and Mexico.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the <\/span>Gulf of Mexico.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Colorado River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the <\/span>Rocky Mountains, in Colorado,<\/b> USA.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Hoover dam<\/b> is located on the Colorado river.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It form the <\/span>Grand Canyon.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

St Lawrence River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
\n

Major Rivers of South America\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Amazon River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It is the <\/span>largest river in the world by volume.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>second longest river in the world after the Nile<\/b>.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It has the <\/span>largest drainage basin<\/b>. It flows through Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, and Bolivia.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>flows through the Amazon Rainforest.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>rises in the Andes Mountains of Peru.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Major tributaries include Rio Negro, Madeira, and Xingu.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the <\/span>Atlantic Ocean<\/b> on the northeastern coast of Brazil.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Ornicco River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the <\/span>Guiana Highlands<\/b> near the Brazil-Venezuela border.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It flows in a <\/span>giant arc.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It flows through <\/span>Venezuela and Colombia.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the Atlantic<\/b> ocean<\/b>.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Prana River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Rises in Southern Brazil, formed by the confluence of the Paranaiba and Grande rivers in Brazil.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It flows through <\/span>Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Itaipu Dam <\/b>is located on the Prana River.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Major Rivers of Europe\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Volga River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It is the <\/span>longest river in Europe (3530 Km)\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It rises in the <\/span>Valdai Hills in western Russia.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>drains into the Caspian Sea.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Danube\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It is the <\/span>second longest river in Europe.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Originates in the <\/span>Black Forest Mountains<\/b> in Southwestern Germany.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>only major European river to flow from the west to the east.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It flows through <\/span>Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and Ukraine.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Major Cities<\/b> Along the Danube: Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade etc\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It drains into <\/span>Black Sea<\/a>.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Rhine River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the <\/span>Swiss Alps.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It flows through <\/span>Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, France, and the Netherlands<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>drains into the North Sea.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Rhone River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the Swiss Alps.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It drains into the Mediterranean Sea.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Ural River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the <\/span>Ural Mountains<\/b>, Southern Russia.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It flows mainly through <\/span>Russia and Kazakhstan.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It makes a <\/span>natural boundary between Europe and Asia.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the Caspian<\/span> Sea.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Dnieper River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It rises in the <\/span>Valdai Hills,<\/b> Western Russia.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It flows mainly through <\/span>Russia, Ukraine, Belarus.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Drains into <\/span>Black Sea.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Major Rivers of Africa<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Nile River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • The Nile River is the <\/span>longest river in the world<\/b>, measuring roughly 6,650 kilometres in length.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It flows from <\/span>south to north<\/b> through <\/span>northeastern Africa<\/b> and drains into the <\/span>Mediterranean Sea near Alexandria.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It is formed by the confluence of two major river systems, namely the <\/span>White Nile and the Blue Nile<\/b>.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • The Nile Basin spans <\/span>11 countries: Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Egypt.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It has historically been called the <\/span>\u201clifeline of Egypt\u201d.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Congo River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It <\/span>originates as the Chambeshi River in the highlands of northeastern Zambia<\/b>, near Lake Tanganyika.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>flows primarily through the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and forms the border with the Republic of the Congo.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • With a length of 2,900 miles (4,700 km), it is the <\/span>second longest river in Africa.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It is also the <\/span>world’s deepest recorded river<\/b>.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>only major river to cross the equator twice.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>drains into the Atlantic Ocean.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Niger River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Niger river is the <\/span>third longest river in Africa <\/b>after the Nile and Congo river.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>originates in the Guinea highlands.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>flows in crescent shape through Mali, Niger, and Benin<\/b> before creating a major delta in Nigeria.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is <\/span>also called the \u201cOil River\u201d <\/b>as it was the major centre of palm oil during the colonial period.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Zambezi River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • The Zambezi River is <\/span>Africa’s fourth-longest river<\/b> and the <\/span>longest east-flowing river.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It originates in the Mwinilunga District of Northwestern Zambia.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It flows through six countries – Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is famous for Victoria Falls, Kariba Dam, and Cahora Bassa Dam.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>drains into Indian Ocean<\/a><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Major Rivers of Asia<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Ganga River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Ganga river is the <\/span>longest river in India (2525 Km).<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>largest river system in India<\/b> in terms of basin area and population supported.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is <\/span>formed by the confluence of Bhagirathi River and Alaknanda River <\/b>at Devprayag.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>enters the plains at Haridwar.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Major Left Bank Tributaries<\/b>: Ramganga, Gomti, Ghaggar, Gandak, Kosi, Mahananda\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Major Right Bank Tributaries<\/b>: Yamuna, Son, Damodar.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Brahmaputra River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It <\/span>originates in Chemayungdung glacier of Kailash range near Mansarovar lake.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>enters India in Arunachal as Dihang <\/b>through Namcha Barwa\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is <\/span>known for floods, shifting channels and bank erosion<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Major Left bank tributaries<\/b>: Burhi, Dihing, Dhansari, Dibang, Lohit, etc\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Major Right bank tributaries<\/b>: Subansiri, Kameng, Manas, Sankosh, Teesta\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is known as <\/span>Tsangpo<\/b> in Tibet and <\/span>Jamuna<\/b> in Bangladesh.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Indus River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Origin<\/b>: Indus originates from glaciers of the Kailash range near Mansarovar Rakas Lake region.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Tributaries<\/b>: Zaskar, Shyok, Gilgit, Drass, Hunza, Kabul are its important tributaries in the higher ranges of Himalayas.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Rivers of Punjab – Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Satluj are left bank tributaries.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Mekong River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It <\/span>originates<\/b> in the Lasagongma Spring on the Tibetan Plateau, China.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>flows through China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It borders<\/span> Myanmar and Laos and Laos and Thailand.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It forms the fertile <\/span>Mekong Delta <\/b>in Vietnam, one of the world\u2019s major rice-producing regions.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Drains into South China Sea.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Yellow River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It is the <\/span>second longest river in China.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It rises in the Tibetan Plateau.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is called the <\/span>Yellow river <\/b>because it carries huge amounts of <\/span>yellow loess,<\/b> fine silt coming from Loess Plateau.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Infamous as <\/span>China’s Sorrow” <\/b>due to massive destruction caused by floods.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is known as the <\/span>\u201cCradle of Chinese Civilization.\u201d<\/b> as early Chinese settlements and agriculture developed along its banks<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Yangtze River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Yangtze river is the <\/span>longest river in Asia.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Length: <\/b>6300 km<\/span><\/li>\n
  • The <\/span>Three Gorges Dam<\/b>, the world’s largest hydroelectric power station, is located on the river.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Drains into <\/span>East China Sea\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Ob River\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Originates at the confluence of the Biya and Katun rivers in the <\/span>Altai Mountains.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It flows mainly through Russia.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>drains into the Arctic Ocean.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Lena River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • It <\/span>originates<\/b> in the Baikal Mountains near Lake Baikal.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>longest river in Russia.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It <\/span>flows entirely in Russia.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • known for the <\/span>Lena Pillars<\/b>, which are towering limestone rock formations.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the <\/span>Arctic Ocean.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Major Rivers of Australia\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Murray River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Rises in the <\/span>Australian Alps in the Great Dividing Range.<\/b><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>longest river in Australia (2508km)\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Drains into the Southern Ocean near Lake Alexandrina.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

Darling River<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n
    \n
  • Rises in the Great Dividing Range.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is the <\/span>third longest river in Australia\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n
  • Part of the <\/span>Murray-Darling River system<\/b>, the largest river system in Australia.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • It joins the Murray river at Wentworth.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Know about Major Rivers of the World with key facts on origin, tributaries, drainage basins, countries, length and geographical significance continent wise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":87676,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[786],"tags":[5480],"class_list":{"0":"post-88175","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-general-studies","8":"tag-major-rivers-of-the-world","9":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88175","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88175"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88175\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88230,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88175\/revisions\/88230"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/87676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88175"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88175"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88175"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}