长江

长江 (literally "Long River") is the longest river in Asia and the third longest in the world at about 6,300 km. It rises on the Tibetan Plateau and flows east through 11 provinces to Shanghai. The Three Gorges Dam (三峡大坝) on the Yangtze is the world's largest hydroelectric power station. The river is also culturally the informal divider between northern and southern China.

In Chinese, the Yangtze is called 长江 only for its full course or lower reaches; the upper reach through Sichuan is traditionally called 金沙江 (Jīnshājiāng). Westerners' name "Yangtze" actually comes from 扬子江, a local name for a short downstream stretch near Yangzhou.