White Jade River

Yurungkash River
White Jade River, Baiyu River
Yurungkash River; White Jade River, Baiyu River
	Khotan in 2011
Native name	يورۇڭقاش دەرياسى (Uyghur); 玉龙喀什河 (Chinese);
Physical characteristics
Source	Kunlun Mountains
• coordinates	35°31′38″N 81°29′42″E / 35.527297°N 81.495070°E
Mouth	Hotan River
• coordinates	38°04′53″N 80°33′45″E / 38.081296°N 80.562477°E
Basin size	14,575 km2 (5,627 sq mi)
Discharge
• average	72.3 cubic metres per second (2,550 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Progression	Hotan→ Tarim→ Taitema Lake

The White Jade River, also known by the native names Baiyu or Yurungkash, is a river in the southern Xinjiang region of China.^[1]

The head waters of the river rise in the

Khotan, the river has yielded white river rocks which are also known as nephrite jade.^[1] ^[2]

North of Khotan, it eventually dries up in the

Taklamakan desert, its seasonal bed joined by that of the Black Jade River (Karakash River) near Koxlax (some 200 km north of Khotan, 38°05′N 80°34′E / 38.08°N 80.56°E), from where it continues north as the Hotan River, which flows into the Tarim River

The river gets its name from the white

alluvial deposits. The jade can also however be found in semi-shallow areas of the river.^{[citation needed}

Roads

Yurungkash River near Hotan (2017).
Map including White Jade River (labelled as Yurungkash R (Khotan)) (RGS, early 20th century)
Map including the northern section of the White Jade River (labeled as Yü-lung-ha-shih Ho) and surrounding region (
USATC, 1971)^[a]

Map including the southern section of the White Jade River (labeled as Yurung Kash) and surrounding region (AMS, 1950)^[b]
Map including the White Jade River (labeled as Ywungkax He (Yü-lung-k'o-shih Ho)) and surrounding region) (
DMA, 1980)^[c]

^ From map: "DELINEATION OF INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARIES MUST NOT BE CONSIDERED AUTHORITATIVE".
^ From map: "THE DELINEATION OF INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARIES ON THIS MAP MUST NOT BE CONSIDERED AUTHORITATIVE."
^ From map: "The representation of international boundaries is not necessarily authoritative."

^ ^a ^b ^c Jacobs, Andrew (September 20, 2010). "Jade from China's West Surpasses Gold in Value". The New York Times. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
^ Moore, Malcolm (August 8, 2008). "White jade rush in China's Wild West". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved November 16, 2018.