River facts
Here is a list of key facts all about rivers. You can find out which is the longest river in the world and what a river is. Read on to find out more.
Salmon River, Idaho, US
What is a river?
Definition of a river: A river is a large natural stream of water flowing in a channel to the sea, a lake, or another stream.

Synonyms for river.
Other words for river include: stream, waterway, brook, creek (US), tributary, brooklet, rivulet, burn (Scotland), course, beck, rill
Longest rivers in the World​
1 Nile 6,650 km
2 Amazon 6,400 km
3 Yangtse 6,300 km
4 Mississippi 6,275 km
5 Yenesei 5,539 km
6 Yellow 5,464 km
7 Ob 5,410 km
8 Parana 4,880 km
9 Congo 4,700 km
10 Amur 4,444 km
Biggest rivers in the World
1 Amazon 209,000 m3/s
2 Ganges 42,470 m3/s
3 Congo 41,200 m3/s
4 Orinoco 35,000 m3/s
5 Yangtze 33,000 m3/s
6 Madeira 31,200 m3/s
7 Rio Negro 28,400 m3/s
8 Parana 25,700 m3/s
9 Brahmaputra 19,200 m3/s
10 Yenisei 18,040 m3/s
m3/s = cubic metres a second
Interesting fact:
The river Amazon is so big, it is as bigger than the next 5 biggest rivers combined!
The Amazon River, Brazil.
Longest rivers in the UK
The River Severn, England.
1 River Severn 354 km
2 River Thames 346 km
3 River Trent 297 km
4 River Great Ouse 230 km
5 River Wye 215 km
6 River Ure 208 km
7 River Tay 188 km
8 River Spey 172 km
9 River Clyde 172 km
10 River Nene 161 km
Longest rivers in the US
The Missouri River, USA
1 Missouri River 2,341 miles (3,768 km)
2 Mississippi River 2,202 miles (3,544 km)
3 Yukon River 1,979 miles (3,185 km)
4 Rio Grande 1,759 miles (2,830 km)
5 Colorado River 1,450 miles (2,330 km)
6 Arkansas River 1,433 miles (2,322 km)
7 Columbia River 1,243 miles (2,000 km)
8 Red River 1,125 miles (1,811 km)
9 Snake River 1,040 miles (1,674 km)
10 Ohio River 979 miles (1,575 km)
River facts
List of leisure activities you can do in a river.
Swimming, sailing, canoeing, white water rafting, using motor boats, water skiing, fishing, river cruises, canyoning, boat trips, Ice skating (in winter where possible), walking and cycling along the river, eating and drinking overlooking the river.
What are rivers used for?
Rivers are also used for drinking water, bathing, washing, as a source of food, transporting goods, transporting people, disposing waste, making hydropower, to drive machinery using a water wheel, act as a border and they help with defence.
How can you cross a river?
Rivers can be crossed by bridges, fords, tunnels, ferries and in London, by a cable car.
Does the river ever run out of water?
Sometimes, yes. Most rivers will flow for all of the year. Some rivers in arid parts of the world only flow for part of the year though and they stop running during the dry season.
Which is the largest drainage basin in the world?
The largest river drainage basin area in the world is that of the Amazon river. It drains an area of 6,144,000 square kilometres. The second largest drainage basin in the world is that of the Rio de la Plate (River Plate) also in South America. It drains an area of 4,144,000 square kilometres making South America the undisputed king of big rivers.
One river channel or two?
Most rivers have one channel but sometime the river can split into more than one channel and this is called a braided river system. When the river meets the sea, it can spread out all over the place and this is called a river delta.
Where does all the water go?
Nearly half of all the land in the world (48.7%) drains into the Atlantic ocean.
Source: Wikipedia
The largest river festival in the world
The largest river festival in the world is the Sumida river firework festival in Tokyo, Japan. It dates back to the 19th century and it is attended by 1,000,000 people every year.
What is brackish water?
Brackish water is neither salt water or fresh water but a mixture of the two. It is found where rivers meet the sea and there are animals and plants which can only live in brackish water like the Archer fish shown in this picture.
Are there rivers in space?
Yes. Rivers have been found in space. Here is a picture of a river on Saturn’s moon, Titan. Only this is not a river of water, it is a river of methane.
In this topic, we look at the geography of rivers. We look at interesting river facts and images of rivers that help us to understand how rivers shape the land. There is a range of river models that you can be inspired by and we have also collated a range of worksheets that are free to download and print. These will all help you to understand all about the geography of rivers.
RIVERS