Lesson 1/55 min
River counts, terms and key facts
Rivers in numbers (they differ by source)
| Item | Fact and source |
|---|---|
| Number of rivers | 1,008 (National River Conservation Commission, 2023 book); another view is about 700 (Banglapedia and secondary geography) |
| Total length with tributaries and branches | about 22,155 km (secondary geography); 22,000 km (River Conservation Commission) |
| Navigable all year | 5,200 km |
| Transboundary rivers | 57 (Joint Rivers Commission); another Banglapedia entry says 58 |
| Common rivers from India | 54 (JRC); 55 in Banglapedia |
| Common rivers from Myanmar | 3: Sangu, Matamuhuri, Naf (as per the Water Development Board) |
| Flowing from Bangladesh into India | 1: Kulik (Kulikh) |
| Go to India and come back | 4: Atrai, Punarbhaba, Mahananda, Tangon |
| ‘Nad’ (male-named rivers) | 3: Brahmaputra, Kapotakkha, Arial Khan; Meghna is not a ‘nad’ |
| Starts and ends inside Bangladesh | Halda (Khandokar's other question also gives Sangu) |
| Smallest river | Gangina (0.032 km, books) |
| Starting in the Himalayas (books) | 3: Padma, Brahmaputra and Indus |
Watch out: The books print 1,008, 700, 405 (flowing through Bangladesh) and 230 (with branches); the commission's web list says 907. The reason is that people do not define a ‘river’ the same way. Check the source in a question. Common rivers: 57 (JRC); some sources say 58.
Nad versus nadi
- The difference is grammatical: a feminine-sounding name (ending in -a, -i, -u) is a nadi (Padma, Meghna, Jamuna); a masculine name is a nad (Brahmaputra, Indus, Nile, Amazon)
- The four main rivers: Padma, Meghna, Jamuna, Brahmaputra
- The Padma flows through four countries: China, Nepal, India, Bangladesh (Khandokar); the one river of international standing is the Padma (Zubair)
River terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Tributary | Rises at its own source and joins a main river |
| Distributary/branch | A river from which another river is born |
| Navigable river | A river deep enough for boats (the book's definition is a set amount of water in the dry season) |
| Transboundary river | Flows across more than one country |
| Estuary mouth | Where a river meets the sea or a lake |
| Khari (broad estuary) | A wide estuary |
| Doab | Land between two flowing rivers |
| Confluence; source; valley; basin | Where rivers meet; where one starts; the low land beside it; the area its water drains |
| Poyosti | Farming newly risen river land |
| Sikosti | Being ruined by river erosion |
| Potamology | The science of rivers |
Check yourself
Which four rivers go into India and return to Bangladesh?
At a glance
- 1
Common rivers: 57 (JRC); 54 from India, 3 from Myanmar (Sangu, Matamuhuri, Naf).
- 2
Three ‘nad’: Brahmaputra, Kapotakkha, Arial Khan; Meghna is not a nad.
- 3
Four go to India and return: Atrai, Punarbhaba, Mahananda, Tangon; one flows from Bangladesh into India: Kulikh.
- 4
Rivers navigable all year: 5,200 km; river counts vary: 1,008/907/700.
- 5
Doab = land between two rivers; khari = wide estuary; sikosti = ruined by erosion.