Paraguay River

The Río Paraguay in Asunción

The 2549 km long flowing in South America Paraguay River is the major tributary of the Río Paraná. In its upper reaches it is called in Portuguese, Rio Paraguay, in its lower reaches in Spanish Río Paraguay. The name on Guaraní is Ysyry Paraguay. The name means " water, the water goes ," derived from the language of the original inhabitants, Guaraní: pará ( " Ocean " ), gua ( " to / from " ) and y ( " water").

River

The Paraguay River originates in Brazil in the mountainous highlands of Mato Grosso about 115 kilometers north of Cuiabá. From there, the Paraguay River flows in a southerly direction. He leaves the highlands and lowlands of crosses the Pantanal. There he runs mostly parallel to the Bolivian border. In the south of the Pantanal it forms the border between Brazil and Paraguay. Then it crosses Paraguay in the north-south direction, crossing the Paraguayan capital Asunción. There he united with its largest tributary, the Río Pilcomayo. Immediately afterwards, it forms the border between Paraguay and Argentina. Just north of Corrientes it flows into the Paraná.

Importance

The Paraguay River is the longest and largest river Paraguay. It is navigable to 2000 km in length. After the Paraná he is the second most important trade route of the states through which it flows. Its largest port is Asunción.

Catchment area

The Paraguay has a catchment area of ​​1,168,540 km ²; it extends into the states of Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina.