Ramu
Ramu is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- -5.39°, 145.13°
About Ramu
The Ramu River is a major river in northern Papua New Guinea. The headwaters of the river are formed in the Kratke Range from where it then travels about 640 km (398 mi) northwest to the Bismarck Sea.
Along the Ramu's course, it receives numerous tributaries from the Bismarck Range to the south and the Finisterre and Adelbert.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Ramu (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Ramu in Depth
History
For many millennia, people have lived along the river, and the river has formed the basis for food, transport, and culture.
The area encompassed by the Ramu was part of Kaiser-Wilhelmsland when Germany established German New Guinea in 1884. The Germans were quick to explore their territory, and the mouth of the Ramu was discovered in 1886 by Vice-Admiral Freiherr von Schleinitz after returning to Finschhafen from an expedition to the nearby Sepik. Schleinitz called the Ramu, Ottilien after his ship the Ottilie.
The course of the river was first discovered 10 years later in 1896 after Dr Carl Lauterbach, a botanist, led an expedition organised by the German New Guinea Company (Neu Guinea Kompagnie) to find the headwaters of the Markham River.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Ramu (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Ramu: Key Facts
| Length | 640 km |
|---|---|
| Mouth | Bismarck Sea |
Facts from Wikidata Q2064454 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Ramu: Quick Answers
- Where is Ramu?
- Ramu is located in Papua New Guinea, at 5.3925° S, 145.1324° E.
- Are there dams on the Ramu?
- No dam on the Ramu is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.