Both the Yellow and the Yangtze rivers are considered cradles of the Chinese civilization. Snaking 6,300 km between western China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the East China Sea, the Yangtze River is often said to be the dividing line between North and South China. Geographers, however, technically regard Qinling Mountain and Huaihe River as the precise line of demarcation. As the world's third longest river and Asia's longest river, the Yangtze river spans many diverse regions, and is known by several names. In the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the river is known as Tongtian He, or Travelling-Through-the-Heavens River. Where it borders Sichuan and runs into Yunnan province, it is referred to as Jinsha Jiang, or River of Golden Sand. Only in its lower reaches is the great river referred to by the name most common to foreigners: the Yangtze.