Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Amazon, Port. Amazonas ämäzōˈnəs [key], world's second longest river, c.3,900 mi (6,280 km) long, formed by the junction in N Peru's Andes Mts. of two major headstreams, the Ucayali and the short...

(Encyclopedia) Madeira mədāˈrə [key], river, c.2,100 mi (3,380 km) long, formed by the junction of the Beni and Mamoré rivers on the Bolivia-Brazil border. It flows north along the border for c.60 mi (100 km), ...

(Encyclopedia) Marañón, river, c.1,000 mi (1,600 km) long, rising in Lake Lauricaucha in the Cordillera Occidental, W central Peru. It flows generally NW, then E across the Andes to join the Ucayali River in NE Pe...

(Encyclopedia) Trans-Amazon Highway, road, c.3,000 mi (4,830 km) long, traversing N central Brazil. The highway, stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Peruvian border, is an important factor in the economic deve...

(Encyclopedia) Negro, Río rēˈō nāˈgrō [key], river, c.1,400 mi (2,250 km) long, rising as the Guainía River in E Colombia where it flows NE before turning south to form part of the Colombia-Venezuela border....

(Encyclopedia) Juruá zho͞orwäˈ [key], river, c.1,500 mi (2,410 km) long, rising in the Cerros de Canchyuaya, E Peru. It flows in a winding course generally NE through Acre and Amazonas states, W Brazil, to the A...

(Encyclopedia) Javari zhəvərēˈ [key], Span. Yavarí, river, c.500 mi (805 km) long, rising in the Cerro de Canchyuaya, E Peru. It flows northeast, forming part of the boundary between Brazil and Peru, before ent...

(Encyclopedia) Amazon ămˈəzŏn [key], in Greek mythology, one of a tribe of warlike women who lived in Asia Minor. The Amazons had a matriarchal society, in which women fought and governed while men performed the...

(Encyclopedia) Pará, river, c.200 mi (320 km) long, N Brazil. It is actually the southeastern arm or estuary of the Amazon, divided from the rest of the river by Marajó island. It receives the waters of the Tocant...

(Encyclopedia) Tocantins river, 1,640 mi (2,639 km) long, formed in S central Goiás state, Brazil, by the confluence of two headstreams. It flows N to the Pará River, the southern distributary of the Amazon, SW of...