Wei River

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the river in west-central China. For other smaller Chinese
rivers, see Wei River (disambiguation).

The drainage basin of the modern Wei.

The Wei River (Chinese ??; pinyin Wi H; WadeGiles Wei Ho) is a major river in
west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of
the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese
civilization.[1]

The source of the Wei River is close to Weiyuan County Wei yuan meaning Wei's
source in Gansu province, less than 200 kilometres (120 mi) from the Yellow River
at Lanzhou. However, due to the sharp turn north the Yellow River takes in Lanzhou,
the Wei and the Yellow River do not meet for more than 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi)
further along the Yellow River's course. In a direct line, the Wei's source lies
700 kilometres (430 mi) west of the main city along its course, Xi'an in Shaanxi
province. The length of the river is 818 kilometres (508 mi) and the area drained
covers 135,000 square kilometres (52,000 sq mi).

The Wei River's tributaries include the Luo River, Jing River, Niutou River, Feng
River and the Chishui River.

History[edit]

Population concentration during the Western Zhou Dynasty (1050771 BC). Note the
extension up the Wei valley.
The valley of the Wei was one of the early cradles of Chinese civilization, along
which the capitals of the Zhou, Qin, Han, and Tang Dynasties were situated. The
area of Dingxi around its headwaters in Gansu has numerous stone age sites from
various early cultures. The Wei Valley is likely the earliest center of Chinese
civilization, and also the location of China's first major irrigation works.[2]
Some Chinese historians now believe the Wei is the ancient Jiang River that gave
its name to the families of Shennong and the Yan emperor, two Chinese legendary
heroes credited with the early development of agriculture there.[3]

The headwaters of the Wei River are also notable in the development of the Northern
Silk Road. The Chinese segment of the Northern Silk Road connected Xi'an (then the
capital of China) to the west via Baoji, Tianshui at the Wei's headwaters, Lanzhou,
Dunhuang, and the Wushao Ling Mountain, before looping north of the Takla Makan on
its way to Kashgar and the routes into Parthia.[4]

In September 2003 extensive rainfall led to flooding that caused over 30

fatalities, and temporarily displaced over 300,000 persons.[5] Ecological aspects
of the Wei River have been examined with respect to flow rates in the Wei River.[6]

The Wei River Bridge (Weihe qiao ???) featured in the design of the People's Bank
of China 5000-yuan note, dated 1953, and shows a train passing over the bridge.