Lancang River - Lancang

A river that flows through southwestern China, the upper reaches of the Mekong River that flows through the Indochina Peninsula. It originates in the Tanggula Mountains that run along the border between the Tibet Autonomous Region and Qinghai Province, and flows southeast under the name of Zhaqu. After entering Tibet, it is called the Lancang River. It flows alongside the Nujiang River across the Tanentao Mountains on the east side, enters Yunnan Province from the northwestern end, then flows further south, and enters Laos at the southern end of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture. The rest of the river is called the Mekong River. Its total length is 4,425 km, but only 1,800 km is in Chinese territory. Because it flows through deep vertical valleys in Chinese territory, there is no flat land other than narrow valley bottom plains, and there is almost no convenience for water transportation. However, it has abundant hydroelectric potential, estimated to reach 36.5 million kilowatts in Yunnan Province alone. There are plans to build 15 hydroelectric power plants (with a total capacity of 20.73 million kilowatts) in a stepped manner in the province. The inhabitants of the river basin are mostly ethnic minorities such as Tibetans, Dais, Lahus and Hanis.

[Aoki Chieko and Kono Michihiro]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国南西部を流れる川で、インドシナ半島を流れるメコン川の上流。チベット自治区と青海省の境界を走るタングラ山脈に源を発し、扎曲(ザチュ)の名でよばれて南東流し、チベットに入ってのち瀾滄江とよばれる。東側の他念他翁(たねんたおう)山脈を挟んで怒江(どこう)と併流し、雲南省北西端から雲南省内に入り、さらに南流し、シーサンパンナ・タイ族自治州南端でラオス領内に入る。以下をメコン川という。全長は4425キロメートルであるが、中国領内は1800キロメートル。中国領内では深い縦谷を刻んで流れるため、狭い谷底平野以外の平地はみられず、水運の便もほとんどない。しかし包蔵水力は豊富で、雲南省内だけで3650万キロワットに達すると推定される。省内に15の水力発電所（出力2073万キロワット）を階段状に建設する計画がある。流域の住民はチベット族、タイ族、ラフ族、ハニ族などの少数民族が多い。

［青木千枝子・河野通博］

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