Geography & Travel
Irrawaddy River
river, Myanmar
Also known as: Ayeyarwady River
Category:
Geography & Travel
- Burmese:
- Ayeyarwady
Irrawaddy River, principal river of Myanmar (formerly Burma), running through the centre of the country. Myanmar’s most important commercial waterway, it is about 1,350 miles (2,170 km) long. Its name is believed to derive from the Sanskrit term airāvatī, meaning “elephant river.” The river flows wholly within the territory of Myanmar. Its total drainage area is about 158,700 square miles (411,000 square km). Its valley forms the historical, cultural, and economic heartland of Myanmar. The Irrawaddy is formed by the confluence of the Nmai and Mali rivers. Both branches rise in the glaciers of the high and remote mountains in ...(100 of 1900 words)