The Han River, also known by its Chinese names Hanshui and Han Jiang, is a left
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Yangtze
The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...
in central
China. It has a length of and is the longest tributary of the Yangtze system.
The river gave its name to the
Han dynasty and, through it, to the
Han Chinese
The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctiv ...
, the dominant ethnicity in China and the most populous ethnic group in the world. It is also the namesake of the city of
Hanzhong on its upper course.
Geography
The headwaters of the Han flow from
Mount Bozhong in southwestern
Shaanxi.
[ The stream then travels east across the southern part of that province.][ Its highland valley—known as the Qinba Laolin—divides and is protected by the Qinling or Qin Mountains to its north and the Dabashan or ]Daba Mountains
The Daba Mountains, also known by their Chinese name as the Dabashan, are a mountain range in Central China between the watersheds of the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers. Part of the larger Qinling mountain range, it cuts through four provinces: Si ...
to its south.[ The main cities are Hanzhong in the west and Ankang in the east. It then enters ]Hubei
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The ...
. It crosses most of Hubei from the northwest to the southeast, flowing into the Yangtze at the provincial capital Wuhan,[ a city of several million inhabitants. The merging rivers divide the city of Wuhan into three sections: Wuchang in the south, ]Hankou
Hankou, alternately romanized as Hankow (), was one of the three towns (the other two were Wuchang and Hanyang) merged to become modern-day Wuhan city, the capital of the Hubei province, China. It stands north of the Han and Yangtze Rivers whe ...
to the northeast of the confluence, and Hanyang Hanyang may refer to:
China
*Hanyang District (漢陽區, 汉阳区, ''Hànyáng Qū''), Wuhan, Hubei
:*Hanyang Arsenal (漢陽兵工廠), founded in 1891 as one of the oldest modern arsenals in Chinese history
:*Hanyang 88 (漢陽八八式步槍), ...
to its southwest. The area surrounding the confluence is known as the Jianghan Plain
Jianghan Plain (; pinyin: Jiānghàn Píngyuán), named for the confluence of the Yangtze ('Jiang') and Han ('han') rivers, is an alluvial plain located in the middle and south of Hubei, China. Wuhan, the most populous city in Central China, is l ...
.[
Apart from a few major basins, such as the area around Hanzhong, the highlands of the Han were covered in primeval forests as late as the 19th century. The Nanshan Forest covered the northern slopes; the Bashan Forest, the southern.
]
Hydroelectric Projects
Danjiangkou Dam
The Danjiangkou Dam () is a concrete gravity dam on the Han river near Danjiangkou in Hubei Province, China. The original dam was constructed between 1958 and 1973. The dam creates a large Danjiangkou Reservoir.
In the 21st century, the Danjiang ...
was constructed on the Han River in northern Hubei in 1958. It has been heightened since. The Danjiangkou Reservoir
Danjiangkou Reservoir () is a multi-purpose reservoir in Xichuan County, Henan and Danjiangkou City, Hubei province, Central China. Created by the Danjiangkou Dam
The Danjiangkou Dam () is a concrete gravity dam on the Han river near Danjiang ...
created thereby is now used as part of the South–North Water Transfer Project.
Culture
The river was previously considered holy by the inhabitants on its banks.[.] It is also considered part of the dividing line between northern and southern China.[
]
See also
* Xihan River, the "Western Han"
Notes
References
Rivers of Shaanxi
Rivers of Hubei
Tributaries of the Yangtze River
Jianghan Plain
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