The Yangtze River [6,380 km (3,964 miles)] is the largest in China and the third largest in the world after the Nile in Africa and the Amazon in South America. Originating from the Tangela Range in Qinghai Province in western China, it traverses eleven provinces and cities from west to east, including Qinghai, Tibet, Sichuan, Yunnan, Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Shanghai. Finally, it pours into the East China Sea at Shanghai (Figure 8.3). As the East China Sea at Shanghai (Figure 8.3). As the largest water system in China, Yangtze River is historically, economically, and culturally important to the country. “The Three Gorges Dam” on the river is the largest dam project and hydropower station in the world. Generally, people consider the river a dividing line between North China and South China. Areas to the north and the south of the river have many differences in climate, scenery, economics, culture, and folk customs.