This list covers 46 rivers whose names start with the letter B, running alphabetically from “Brahmaputra” to “Buriganga.” They range from massive Himalayan waterways to short urban channels, and they cross every inhabited continent. People rely on these rivers for drinking water, farming, hydropower, trade routes, and in some cases, deep cultural and religious traditions.

Rivers are natural channels of flowing water that carry rain, snowmelt, and groundwater from higher ground down to lakes, seas, or other rivers. They shape the land around them, carving valleys and depositing fertile soil that has supported farming communities for thousands of years. The Blue Nile, for example, has fed Ethiopian highlands and Sudanese plains alike, feeding into one of the most storied river systems on Earth.

Below you’ll find the table with River, Countries, Length (km), Type, and Description.

River: the name of each river on the list, so you can quickly find the one you’re looking for.

Countries: the country or countries each river flows through, showing you its geographic reach.

Length (km): the river’s total length in kilometers, giving you a sense of its scale.

Type: how the river fits into its wider system, such as whether it’s a tributary or flows straight to the sea.

Description: a short overview of each river’s origin, path, and notable features, so you get the full picture at a glance.

Rivers

RiverCountriesLength (km)Type
BrahmaputraIndia, China, Bangladesh, Bhutan2,900Tributary (joins the Ganges)
Blue NileEthiopia, Sudan1,600Tributary of the Nile
Black VoltaBurkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana1,350Forms the Volta River
BrazosUnited States1,350Flows directly to the sea
BermejoBolivia, Argentina1,450Tributary of the Paraguay
BelayaRussia1,430Tributary of the Kama
BenueCameroon, Nigeria1,400Tributary of the Niger
BeniBolivia1,113Tributary of the Madeira
Black (Sông Đà)Vietnam, China927Tributary of the Red River
BandamaCôte d’Ivoire950Flows directly to the sea
BarakIndia, Bangladesh900Becomes the Surma-Meghna
BaritoIndonesia900Flows directly to the sea
BhimaIndia861Tributary of the Krishna
BrahmaniIndia799Flows directly to the sea
BugUkraine, Belarus, Poland772Tributary of the Vistula
BomuCentral African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo725Tributary of the Ubangi
BurdekinAustralia719Flows directly to the sea
Big SiouxUnited States676Tributary of the Missouri
BerezinaBelarus613Tributary of the Dnieper
BowCanada587Tributary of the South Saskatchewan
Büyük MenderesTurkey584Flows directly to the sea
BetwaIndia590Tributary of the Yamuna
BrancoBrazil490Tributary of the Rio Negro
BanasIndia480Tributary of the Chambal
BeasIndia470Tributary of the Sutlej
BighornUnited States461Tributary of the Yellowstone
BiobíoChile380Flows directly to the sea
BogotáColombia380Tributary of the Magdalena
BurnettAustralia375Flows directly to the sea
BrisbaneAustralia344Flows directly to the sea
BrantasIndonesia320Flows directly to the sea
BuzăuRomania302Tributary of the Siret
BergSouth Africa285Flows directly to the sea
BosnaBosnia and Herzegovina273Tributary of the Sava
BrdaPoland245Tributary of the Vistula
BhavaniIndia217Tributary of the Cauvery
BharathapuzhaIndia209Flows directly to the sea
BlackfootUnited States208Tributary of the Clark Fork
BhagirathiIndia205Source stream of the Ganges
BullerNew Zealand177Flows directly to the sea
BrentaItaly174Flows directly to the sea
BakerChile170Flows directly to the sea
BlackwaterIreland169Flows directly to the sea
BakırçayTurkey129Flows directly to the sea
BoyneIreland112Flows directly to the sea
BurigangaBangladesh27Distributary of the Dhaleswari

Descriptions

Brahmaputra
One of Asia’s mightiest rivers, the Brahmaputra rises in Tibet and carves through the Himalayas before flooding the plains of Assam and merging with the Ganges in Bangladesh.
Blue Nile
Rising from Lake Tana in Ethiopia’s highlands, the Blue Nile carries most of the Nile’s water and fertile silt northward to meet the White Nile at Khartoum.
Black Volta
One of two branches that combine to create the Volta, the Black Volta forms part of Ghana’s border with its neighbors before merging with the White Volta.
Brazos
Texas’s longest river, the Brazos winds from the Panhandle to the Gulf of Mexico, shaping the state’s ranching and cotton-growing history along its banks.
Bermejo
Known for its reddish, sediment-heavy water, the Bermejo flows from the Bolivian Andes across the Gran Chaco lowlands before joining the Paraguay River.
Belaya
The Belaya rises in the Ural Mountains and meanders through Bashkortostan, eventually feeding the Kama River, a major tributary of the Volga.
Benue
The Benue rises in Cameroon’s highlands and flows west into Nigeria, joining the Niger River at Lokoja to form one of West Africa’s key inland waterways.
Beni
Fed by Andean meltwater, the Beni flows north through Bolivia’s lowland jungle and eventually joins the Mamoré to form the Madeira, a major Amazon tributary.
Black (Sông Đà)
Known in Vietnam as the Sông Đà, the Black River flows from Yunnan through northern Vietnam’s mountains and feeds the Red River near Hanoi.
Bandama
Côte d’Ivoire’s longest river, the Bandama runs south from the country’s savanna interior to the Gulf of Guinea near Grand-Lahou.
Barak
Rising in the hills of Manipur, the Barak flows through northeast India before entering Bangladesh, where it splits into the Surma and Kushiyara rivers.
Barito
The Barito is Borneo’s major waterway, draining the island’s central highlands and serving as a vital trade route through the city of Banjarmasin.
Bhima
Rising near Pune, the Bhima flows southeast across the Deccan Plateau and joins the Krishna River in Karnataka after passing several pilgrimage towns.
Brahmani
Formed by the union of the Sankh and South Koel rivers, the Brahmani flows through Odisha to reach the Bay of Bengal near Dhamra.
Bug
The Bug forms much of the border between Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine before joining the Narew and ultimately the Vistula River.
Bomu
Forming part of the border between the Central African Republic and DR Congo, the Bomu joins the Mbomou River to help create the Ubangi.
Burdekin
Queensland’s Burdekin River drains a large tropical catchment and empties into the Coral Sea, supporting one of Australia’s biggest sugarcane-growing regions.
Big Sioux
Flowing from South Dakota through Sioux Falls, the Big Sioux River winds south to join the Missouri River near the Iowa border.
Berezina
Made famous by Napoleon’s disastrous 1812 crossing, the Berezina flows south through Belarus’s forests and marshes to join the Dnieper River.
Bow
Flowing out of the Canadian Rockies through Banff and Calgary, the Bow River is fed by glacial meltwater and joins the South Saskatchewan River further east.
Büyük Menderes
Ancient Greeks called this winding Turkish river the Meander, and its looping course through the Aegean lowlands gave the word “meander” to the English language.
Betwa
The Betwa rises in Madhya Pradesh and flows northeast across central India, joining the Yamuna near Hamirpur after passing the historic city of Orchha.
Branco
Flowing south through the savannas of Roraima state, the Branco is a major tributary of the Rio Negro in the northern Amazon basin.
Banas
Rajasthan’s Banas River flows southeast from the Aravalli Hills across dry plains before joining the Chambal River.
Beas
One of the five rivers of Punjab, the Beas rises in the Himalayas near Rohtang Pass and joins the Sutlej before that river crosses into Pakistan.
Bighorn
Rising in Wyoming’s mountains, the Bighorn River flows north through Montana’s badlands and canyons before joining the Yellowstone River.
Biobío
Historically the boundary between Spanish colonists and the Mapuche people, the Biobío is one of Chile’s longest rivers, running from the Andes to the Pacific.
Bogotá
Flowing past the Colombian capital it’s named for, the Bogotá River tumbles over the dramatic Tequendama Falls before joining the Magdalena River.
Burnett
Queensland’s Burnett River flows from the Great Dividing Range to the Coral Sea at Bundaberg, a town famous for its sugar and rum.
Brisbane
Winding through Queensland’s capital city, the Brisbane River empties into Moreton Bay and has shaped the layout and history of the city along its banks.
Brantas
East Java’s longest river, the Brantas loops around Mount Kelud and passes through Malang and Surabaya before reaching the Java Sea.
Buzău
Rising in the Carpathian Mountains, the Buzău flows east across Romania’s plains and joins the Siret River not far from the Danube.
Berg
Flowing through the Western Cape’s wine country near Stellenbosch and Paarl, the Berg River empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Velddrif.
Bosna
Giving the country of Bosnia its name, the Bosna River flows north from near Sarajevo to join the Sava River, part of the Danube system.
Brda
Flowing through the Pomeranian region, the Brda is known for its clean water and canoeing routes before it joins the Vistula at Bydgoszcz.
Bhavani
Rising in the Western Ghats, the Bhavani flows east through Tamil Nadu’s textile town of the same name before joining the Cauvery River.
Bharathapuzha
Kerala’s second-longest river, the Bharathapuzha flows west from the Western Ghats to the Arabian Sea, nourishing the region’s rice paddies.
Blackfoot
Made famous by the memoir and film “A River Runs Through It,” Montana’s Blackfoot River flows through forested canyons to join the Clark Fork.
Bhagirathi
Emerging from the Gangotri Glacier in the Himalayas, the Bhagirathi is considered the true source stream of the sacred Ganges River.
Buller
The South Island’s largest river by volume, the Buller drains Lake Rotoiti and carves through dramatic gorges before reaching the Tasman Sea.
Brenta
Flowing from the Dolomites through the Veneto region, the Brenta once served as a major transport canal for goods heading to Venice.
Baker
Fed by glacial lakes in Chilean Patagonia, the Baker carries more water than any other river in Chile as it rushes toward the Pacific fjords.
Blackwater
Rising in County Kerry, Ireland’s Blackwater flows east through fertile farmland before turning south to reach the sea near Youghal.
Bakırçay
Flowing through western Turkey’s olive-growing region, the Bakırçay empties into the Aegean Sea near the ancient ruins of Pergamon.
Boyne
Steeped in Irish mythology and history, the Boyne flows past the ancient tombs of Newgrange and the site of the famous 1690 battle before reaching the Irish Sea.
Buriganga
Though short, the Buriganga is the historic lifeline of Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital, carrying heavy river traffic despite serious pollution problems.
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