The Luama River () is a tributary of the

Lualaba River The Lualaba River (, , ) flows entirely within the eastern part of Democratic Republic of the Congo. It provides the greatest streamflow to the Congo River, while the River source, source of the Congo is recognized as the Chambeshi River, Chambeshi ...

in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

(DRC).

Location

The Luama rises in the mountains to the west of

Lake Tanganyika Lake Tanganyika ( ; ) is an African Great Lakes, African Great Lake. It is the world's List of lakes by volume, second-largest freshwater lake by volume and the List of lakes by depth, second deepest, in both cases after Lake Baikal in Siberia. ...

, in the Kalemie Territory of Tanganyika District. It flows north and northwest into Kabambare Territory of

Maniema Maniema Province (''Jimbo la Maniema'', in Swahili) is one of 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu. The 2020 population was estimated to be 2,856,300. Toponymy Henry Morton Stanley explored the area ...

, then turns to the southwest, entering the Lualaba above Kasongo. The river has five sources in the mountains, two of which are above in altitude. The headwater regions upstream of Pene Mende include a system of wetlands about in length and covering about . Below these wetlands the river drops down three waterfalls and includes several minor rapids. The Luama enters the Lualaba from the east after the rapids below Kangolo and just before the Lualaba turns northwest in the stretch above Kibombo. The Luama River defines the southern boundary of the range of eastern gorillas, which is bounded by the Lualaba river to the west, the Albertine rift to the east and the

Lindi River The Lindi () is a minor river of northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It flows through North Kivu and Tshopo provinces, and empties into the Congo River just west of Kisangani. Settlements * Asangwa *Bafwasende Bafwasende is a to ...

to the north.

European exploration

The explorer

Henry Morton Stanley Sir Henry Morton Stanley (born John Rowlands; 28 January 1841 – 10 May 1904) was a Welsh-American explorer, journalist, soldier, colonial administrator, author, and politician famous for his exploration of Central Africa and search for missi ...

visited the river in October 1876. He said of the people: "They are tolerably hospitable, and permit strangers the free use of their dwellings. The bananas and plantains are very luxuriant, while the Guinea palms supply the people with oil and wine; the forests give them fuel, the rivers fish, and the gardens cassava, groundnuts, and Indian corn". He said of the lower reaches of the river that as far as the Lualaba the current was from three to six knots and the river was about deep, with a shaly bed. Stanley followed the river down to the Lualaba, and then followed the Lualaba downstream as it curved away to the west, determining that it was not the

Nile The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...

had surmised, but was the upper part of the

Congo River The Congo River, formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second-longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the third-largest river in the world list of rivers by discharge, by discharge volume, following the Amazon Ri ...

. The Arab war in the

Congo Free State The Congo Free State, also known as the Independent State of the Congo (), was a large Sovereign state, state and absolute monarchy in Central Africa from 1885 to 1908. It was privately owned by Leopold II of Belgium, King Leopold II, the const ...

was concluded by a victory by the '' Force Publique'' led by Dhanis and Pnthier on the Luama River on 20 October 1893.

References

Sources

* * * * * * Rivers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo {{DRCongo-river-stub