The Xi River (Chinese: 西江) is the western tributary of the Pearl River in China. It is formed by the confluence of the Gui and Xun Rivers in Wuzhou, Guangxi. It then flows east through Guangdong, and enters the Pearl River Delta just east of the Lingyang Gorge in Zhaoqing. The main branch of the Xi River flows southeast through the delta entering the South China Sea at Modao Men, just west of Macau. The major cities along the Xi include Wuzhou, Zhaoqing, and Jiangmen.
The other two main tributaries of Pearl River are the Dongjiang River (literally, the East River) and Beijiang River (the Northern River).
The Xi River is navigable for its entire length. It is a commercial waterway of southern China, and links the delta cities to the interior. Over two thousand years ago, the Lingqu Canal was dug, connecting the Xi River basin (the Li River, which is a tributary of the Gui River with the Xiang River, which flows into the Yangtze, thus providing a continuous waterway from the Pearl River Delta to the Yangtze Valley.
The entire Xi River system is the largest of the Pearl's tributaries, being 2,197 km, and its volume of flow is second in China only to that of the Yangtze River. It supplies water to many places in Guangxi, Guangdong and Macau.
Other transliterations of the River's name include Hsi River and Hsi Chiang.
Another Xi River is a minor tributary of the Jiulong River northwest of Xiamen.
Read more about Xi River: Xi River System, Major Cities Along The River
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