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Retail

Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells in smaller quantities to consumers for a profit. Retailers are the final link in the supply chain from producers to consumers.

Retail markets and shops have a very ancient history, dating back to antiquity. Some of the earliest retailers were itinerant peddlers. Over the centuries, retail shops were transformed from little more than "rude booths" to the sophisticated shopping malls of the modern era. In the digital age, an increasing number of retailers are seeking to reach broader markets by selling through multiple channels, including both bricks and mortar and online retailing. Digital technologies are also affecting the way that consumers pay for goods and services. Retailing support services may also include the provision of credit, delivery services, advisory services, stylist services and a range of other supporting services. Retail workers are the employees of such stores.

Most modern retailers typically make a variety of strategic level decisions including the type of store, the market to be served, the optimal product assortment, customer service, supporting services, and the store's overall market positioning. Once the strategic retail plan is in place, retailers devise the retail mix which includes product, price, place, promotion, personnel, and presentation.

Etymology
The word retail comes from the Old French verb retaillier, meaning "to shape by cutting" (c. 1365). It was first recorded as a noun in 1433 with the meaning of "a sale in small quantities" from the Middle French verb retailler meaning "a piece cut off, shred, scrap, paring". At the present, the meaning of the word retail (in English, French, Dutch, German and Spanish) refers to the sale of small quantities of items to consumers (as opposed to wholesale).

Definition and explanation
Retail refers to the activity of selling goods or services directly to consumers or end-users. Some retailers may sell to business customers, and such sales are termed non-retail activity. In some jurisdictions or regions, legal definitions of retail specify that at least 80 per cent of sales activity must be to end-users.

Retailing often occurs in retail stores or service establishments, but may also occur through direct selling such as through vending machines, door-to-door sales or electronic channels. Although the idea of retail is often associated with the purchase of goods, the term may be applied to service providers that sell to consumers. Retail service providers include retail banking, tourism, insurance, private healthcare, private education, private security firms, legal firms, publishers, public transport, and others. For example, a tourism provider might have a retail division that books travel and accommodation for consumers plus a wholesale division that purchases blocks of accommodation, hospitality, transport, and sightseeing which are subsequently packaged into a holiday tour for sale to retail travel agents.

Some retailers badge their stores as "wholesale outlets" offering "wholesale prices." While this practice may encourage consumers to imagine that they have access to lower prices, while being prepared to trade-off reduced prices for cramped in-store environments, in a strictly legal sense, a store that sells the majority of its merchandise direct to consumers, is defined as a retailer rather than a wholesaler. Different jurisdictions set parameters for the ratio of consumer to business sales that define a retail business.

History
Retail markets have existed since ancient times. Archaeological evidence for trade, probably involving barter systems, dates back more than 10,000 years. As civilizations grew, barter was replaced with retail trade involving coinage. Selling and buying are thought to have emerged in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) in around the 7th-millennium BCE. In ancient Greece, markets operated within the agora, an open space where, on market days, goods were displayed on mats or temporary stalls. In ancient Rome, trade took place in the forum. The Roman forum was arguably the earliest example of a permanent retail shop-front.

Research from July 2008 suggests that China exhibited a rich history of early retail systems. From as early as 200 BCE, Chinese packaging and branding were used to signal family, place names and product quality, and the use of government imposed product branding was used between 600 and 900 CE. Eckhart and Bengtsson have argued that during the Song Dynasty (960–1127), Chinese society developed a consumerist culture, where a high level of consumption was attainable for a wide variety of ordinary consumers rather than just the elite.

In Medieval England and Europe, relatively few permanent shops were to be found; instead, customers walked into the tradesman's workshops where they discussed purchasing options directly with tradesmen. In the more populous cities, a small number of shops were beginning to emerge by the 13th century. Outside the major cities, most consumable purchases were made through markets or fairs. Market-places appear to have emerged independently outside Europe. The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is often cited as the world's oldest continuously operating market; its construction began in 1455. The Spanish conquistadors wrote glowingly of markets in the Americas. In the 15th century, the Mexica (Aztec) market of Tlatelolco was the largest in all the Americas.

By the 17th century, permanent shops with more regular trading hours were beginning to supplant markets and fairs as the main retail outlet. Provincial shopkeepers were active in almost every English market town. As the number of shops grew, they underwent a transformation. The trappings of a modern shop, which had been entirely absent from the sixteenth- and early seventeenth-century store, gradually made way for store interiors and shopfronts that are more familiar to modern shoppers. Prior to the eighteenth century, the typical retail store had no counter, display cases, chairs, mirrors, changing rooms, etc. However, the opportunity for the customer to browse merchandise, touch and feel products began to be available, with retail innovations from the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

By the late 18th century, grand shopping arcades began to emerge across Europe and in the Antipodes. A shopping arcade refers to a multiple-vendor space, operating under a covered roof. Typically, the roof was constructed of glass to allow for natural light and to reduce the need for candles or electric lighting. Some of the earliest examples of shopping arcade appeared in Paris, due to its lack of pavement for pedestrians. While the arcades were the province of the bourgeoisie, a new type of retail venture emerged to serve the needs of the working poor. John Stuart Mill wrote about the rise of the co-operative retail store, which he witnessed first-hand in the mid-nineteenth century.

The modern era of retailing is defined as the period from the industrial revolution to the 21st century. In major cities, the department store emerged in the mid- to late 19th century, and permanently reshaped shopping habits, and redefined concepts of service and luxury. Many of the early department stores were more than just a retail emporium; rather they were venues where shoppers could spend their leisure time and be entertained. Retail, using mail order, came of age during the mid-19th century. Although catalogue sales had been used since the 15th century, this method of retailing was confined to a few industries such as the sale of books and seeds. However, improvements in transport and postal services led several entrepreneurs on either side of the Atlantic to experiment with catalogue sales.

In the post-war period, an American architect, Victor Gruen developed a concept for a shopping mall; a planned, self-contained shopping complex complete with an indoor plaza, statues, planting schemes, piped music, and car-parking. Gruen's vision was to create a shopping atmosphere where people felt so comfortable, they would spend more time in the environment, thereby enhancing opportunities for purchasing. The first of these malls opened at Northland Mall near Detroit in 1954. Throughout the twentieth century, a trend towards larger store footprints became discernible. The average size of a U.S. supermarket grew from 31000 sqft square feet in 1991 to 44000 sqft square feet in 2000. By the end of the twentieth century, stores were using labels such as "mega-stores" and "warehouse" stores to reflect their growing size. The upward trend of increasing retail space was not consistent across nations and led in the early 21st century to a 2-fold difference in square footage per capita between the United States and Europe.

As the 21st century takes shape, some indications suggest that large retail stores have come under increasing pressure from online sales models and that reductions in store size are evident. Under such competition and other issues such as business debt, there has been a noted business disruption called the retail apocalypse in recent years which several retail businesses, especially in North America, are sharply reducing their number of stores, or going out of business entirely.

Retail strategy
The distinction between "strategic" and "managerial" decision-making is commonly used to distinguish "two phases having different goals and based on different conceptual tools. Strategic planning concerns the choice of policies aiming at improving the competitive position of the firm, taking account of challenges and opportunities proposed by the competitive environment. On the other hand, managerial decision-making is focused on the implementation of specific targets."

In retailing, the strategic plan is designed to set out the vision and provide guidance for retail decision-makers and provide an outline of how the product and service mix will optimize customer satisfaction. As part of the strategic planning process, it is customary for strategic planners to carry out a detailed environmental scan which seeks to identify trends and opportunities in the competitive environment, market environment, economic environment and statutory-political environment. The retail strategy is normally devised or reviewed every three to five years by the chief executive officer. The profit margins of retailers depend largely on their ability to achieve market competitive transaction costs.

The strategic retail analysis typically includes following elements:

 * Market analysis – Market size, stage of market, market competitiveness, market attractiveness, market trends
 * Customer analysis – Market segmentation, demographic, geographic, and psychographic profile, values and attitudes, shopping habits, brand preferences, analysis of needs and wants, and media habits
 * Internal analysis – Other capacities including human resource capability, technological capability, financial capability, ability to generate scale economies or economies of scope, trade relations, reputation, positioning, and past performance
 * Competition analysis – Availability of substitutes, competitor's strengths and weaknesses, perceptual mapping, competitive trends
 * Review of product mix – :: Sales per square foot, stock-turnover rates, profitability per product line
 * Review of distribution channels – Lead-times between placing order and delivery, cost of distribution, cost efficiency of intermediaries
 * Evaluation of the economics of the strategy – Cost-benefit analysis of planned activities

At the conclusion of the retail analysis, retail marketers should have a clear idea of which groups of customers are to be the target of marketing activities. Not all elements are, however, equal, often with demographics, shopping motivations, and spending directing consumer activities. Retail research studies suggest that there is a strong relationship between a store's positioning and the socio-economic status of customers. In addition, the retail strategy, including service quality, has a significant and positive association with customer loyalty. A marketing strategy effectively outlines all key aspects of firms' targeted audience, demographics, preferences. In a highly competitive market, the retail strategy sets up long-term sustainability. It focuses on customer relationships, stressing the importance of added value, customer satisfaction and highlights how the store's market positioning appeals to targeted groups of customers.

Retail marketing

A retail mix is devised for the purpose of coordinating day-to-day tactical decisions. The retail marketing mix typically consists of six broad decision layers including product decisions, place decisions, promotion, price, personnel and presentation (also known as physical evidence). The retail mix is loosely based on the marketing mix, but has been expanded and modified in line with the unique needs of the retail context. A number of scholars have argued for an expanded marketing, mix with the inclusion of two new Ps, namely, Personnel and Presentation since these contribute to the customer's unique retail experience and are the principal basis for retail differentiation. Yet other scholars argue that the Retail Format (i.e. retail formula) should be included. The modified retail marketing mix that is most commonly cited in textbooks is often called the 6 Ps of retailing (see diagram at right). The primary product-related decisions facing the retailer are the product assortment (what product lines, how many lines and which brands to carry); the type of customer service (high contact through to self-service) and the availability of support services (e.g. credit terms, delivery services, after sales care). These decisions depend on careful analysis of the market, demand, competition as well as the retailer's skills and expertise.

Customer service is the "sum of acts and elements that allow consumers to receive what they need or desire from [the] retail establishment." Retailers must decide whether to provide a full service outlet or minimal service outlet, such as no-service in the case of vending machines; self-service with only basic sales assistance or a full service operation as in many boutiques and speciality stores. In addition, the retailer needs to make decisions about sales support such as customer delivery and after sales customer care.

Place decisions are primarily concerned with consumer access and may involve location, space utilisation and operating hours. Retailers may consider a range of both qualitative and quantitative factors to evaluate to potential sites under consideration. Macro factors include market characteristics (demographic, economic and socio-cultural), demand, competition and infrastructure (e.g. the availability of power, roads, public transport systems). Micro factors include the size of the site (e.g. availability of parking), access for delivery vehicles. A major retail trend has been the shift to multi-channel retailing. To counter the disruption caused by online retail, many bricks and mortar retailers have entered the online retail space, by setting up online catalogue sales and e-commerce websites. However, many retailers have noticed that consumers behave differently when shopping online. For instance, in terms of choice of online platform, shoppers tend to choose the online site of their preferred retailer initially, but as they gain more experience in online shopping, they become less loyal and more likely to switch to other retail sites. Online stores are usually available 24 hours a day, and many consumers across the globe have Internet access both at work and at home.

The broad pricing strategy is normally established in the company's overall strategic plan. In the case of chain stores, the pricing strategy would be set by head office. Broadly, there are six approaches to pricing strategy mentioned in the marketing literature: operations-oriented, revenue-oriented, customer-oriented, value-based, relationship-oriented, and socially-oriented. When decision-makers have determined the broad approach to pricing (i.e., the pricing strategy), they turn their attention to pricing tactics. Tactical pricing decisions are shorter term prices, designed to accomplish specific short-term goals. Pricing tactics that are commonly used in retail include discount pricing, everyday low prices, high-low pricing, loss leaders, product bundling, promotional pricing, and psychological pricing. Two strategies to entice the buyer, money back guarantee and buy one get one free, were devised by 18th-century retail entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood. Retailers must also plan for customer preferred payment modes – e.g. cash, credit, lay-by, Electronic Funds Transfer at Point-of-Sale (EFTPOS). All payment options require some type of handling and attract costs. Contrary to common misconception, price is not the most important factor for consumers, when deciding to buy a product. Because patronage at a retail outlet varies, flexibility in scheduling is desirable. Employee scheduling software is sold, which, using known patterns of customer patronage, more or less reliably predicts the need for staffing for various functions at times of the year, day of the month or week, and time of day. Usually needs vary widely. Conforming staff utilization to staffing needs requires a flexible workforce which is available when needed but does not have to be paid when they are not, part-time workers; as of 2012 70% of retail workers in the United States were part-time. This may result in financial problems for the workers, who while they are required to be available at all times if their work hours are to be maximized, may not have sufficient income to meet their family and other obligations. Retailers can employ different techniques to enhance sales volume and to improve the customer experience, such as Add-on, Upsell or Cross-sell; Selling on value; and knowing when to close the sale.

Transactional marketing aims to find target consumers, then negotiate, trade, and finally end relationships to complete the transaction. In this one-time transaction process, both parties aim to maximize their own interests. As a result, transactional marketing raises follow-up problems such as poor after-sales service quality and a lack of feedback channels for both parties. In addition, because retail enterprises needed to redevelop client relationships for each transaction, marketing costs were high and customer retention was low. All these downsides to transactional marketing gradually pushed the retail industry towards establishing long-term cooperative relationships with customers. Through this lens, enterprises began to focus on the process from transaction to relationship. While expanding the sales market and attracting new customers is very important for the retail industry, it is also important to establish and maintain long term good relationships with previous customers, hence the name of the underlying concept, "relational marketing". Under this concept, retail enterprises value and attempt to improve relationships with customers, as customer relationships are conducive to maintaining stability in the current competitive retail market, and are also the future of retail enterprises.

Presentation refers to the physical evidence that signals the retail image. Physical evidence may include a diverse range of elements – the store itself including premises, offices, exterior facade and interior layout, websites, delivery vans, warehouses, staff uniforms. The environment in which the retail service encounter occurs is sometimes known as the retail servicescape. The store environment consists of many elements such as aromas, the physical environment (furnishings, layout, and functionality), ambient conditions (lighting, air temperature, and music) as well as signs, symbols, and artifacts (e.g. sales promotions, shelf space, sample stations, visual communications). Retail designers pay close attention to the front of the store, which is known as the decompression zone. In order to maximize the number of selling opportunities, retailers generally want customers to spend more time in a retail store. However, this must be balanced against customer expectations surrounding convenience, access and realistic waiting times. The way that brands are displayed is also part of the overall retail design. Where a product is placed on the shelves has implications for purchase likelihood as a result of visibility and access. Ambient conditions, such as lighting, temperature and music, are also part of the overall retail environment. It is common for a retail store to play music that relates to their target market.

Shopper profiles
Two different strands of research have investigated shopper behaviour. One is primarily concerned with shopper motivations. The other stream of research seeks to segment shoppers according to common, shared characteristics. To some extent, these streams of research are inter-related, but each stream offers different types of insights into shopper behaviour.

Babin et al. carried out some of the earliest investigations into shopper motivations and identified two broad motives: utilitarian and hedonic. Utilitarian motivations are task-related and rational. For the shopper with utilitarian motives, purchasing is a work-related task that is to be accomplished in the most efficient and expedient manner. On the other hand, hedonic motives refer to pleasure. The shopper with hedonic motivations views shopping as a form of escapism where they are free to indulge fantasy and freedom. Hedonic shoppers are more involved in the shopping experience.

Many different shopper profiles can be identified. Retailers develop customised segmentation analyses for each unique outlet. However, it is possible to identify a number of broad shopper profiles. One of the most well-known and widely cited shopper typologies is that developed by Sproles and Kendal in the mid-1980s. Sproles and Kendall's consumer typology has been shown to be relatively consistent across time and across cultures. Their typology is based on the consumer's approach to making purchase decisions.
 * Quality conscious/Perfectionist: Quality-consciousness is characterised by a consumer's search for the very best quality in products; quality conscious consumers tend to shop systematically making more comparisons and shopping around.
 * Brand-conscious: Brand-consciousness is characterised by a tendency to buy expensive, well-known brands or designer labels. Those who score high on brand-consciousness tend to believe that the higher prices are an indicator of quality and exhibit a preference for department stores or top-tier retail outlets.
 * Recreation-conscious/Hedonistic: Recreational shopping is characterised by the consumer's engagement in the purchase process. Those who score high on recreation-consciousness regard shopping itself as a form of enjoyment.
 * Price-conscious: A consumer who exhibits price-and-value consciousness. Price-conscious shoppers carefully shop around seeking lower prices, sales or discounts and are motivated by obtaining the best value for money.
 * Novelty/fashion-conscious: characterised by a consumer's tendency to seek out new products or new experiences for the sake of excitement; who gain excitement from seeking new things; they like to keep up-to-date with fashions and trends, variety-seeking is associated with this dimension.
 * Impulsive: Impulsive consumers are somewhat careless in making purchase decisions, buy on the spur of the moment and are not overly concerned with expenditure levels or obtaining value. Those who score high on impulsive dimensions tend not to be engaged with the object at either a cognitive or emotional level.
 * Confused (by overchoice): characterised by a consumer's confusion caused by too many product choices, too many stores or an overload of product information; tend to experience information overload.
 * Habitual/brand loyal: characterised by a consumer's tendency to follow a routine purchase pattern on each purchase occasion; consumers have favourite brands or stores and have formed habits in choosing; the purchase decision does not involve much evaluation or shopping around.

Some researchers have adapted Sproles and Kendall's methodology for use in specific countries or cultural groups. Consumer decision styles are important for retailers and marketers because they describe behaviours that are relatively stable over time and for this reason, they are useful for market segmentation.

Types of retail outlets
Retail formats (also known as retail formulas) influence the consumer's store choice and addresses the consumer's expectations. At its most basic level, a retail format is a simple marketplace, that is; a location where goods and services are exchanged. In some parts of the world, the retail sector is still dominated by small family-run stores, but large retail chains are increasingly dominating the sector, because they can exert considerable buying power and pass on the savings in the form of lower prices. Many of these large retail chains also produce their own private labels which compete alongside manufacturer brands. Considerable consolidation of retail stores has changed the retail landscape, transferring power away from wholesalers and into the hands of the large retail chains. In Britain and Europe, the retail sale of goods is designated as a service activity. The European Service Directive applies to all retail trade including periodic markets, street traders and peddlers.

Retail stores may be classified by the type of product carried. Softline retailers sell goods that are consumed after a single-use, or have a limited life (typically under three years) in they are normally consumed. Soft goods include clothing, other fabrics, footwear, toiletries, cosmetics, medicines and stationery. Grocery stores, including supermarkets and hypermarkets, along with convenience stores carry a mix of food products and consumable household items such as detergents, cleansers, personal hygiene products. Retailers selling consumer durables are sometimes known as hardline retailers – automobiles, appliances, electronics, furniture, sporting goods, lumber, etc., and parts for them. Specialist retailers operate in many industries such as the arts e.g. green grocers, contemporary art galleries, bookstores, handicrafts, musical instruments, gift shops.

Challenges
To achieve and maintain a foothold in an existing market, a prospective retail establishment must overcome the following hurdles:
 * regulatory barriers including:
 * restrictions on real-estate purchases, especially as imposed by local governments and against "big-box" chain retailers
 * restrictions on foreign investment in retailers, in terms of both absolute amount of financing provided and percentage share of voting stock (e.g. common stock) purchased
 * unfavorable taxation structures, especially those designed to penalize or keep out "big box" retailers (see "Regulatory" above)
 * absence of developed supply-chain and integrated IT management
 * high competitiveness among existing market participants and resulting low profit margins, caused in part by:
 * constant advances in product design resulting in constant threat of product obsolescence and price declines for existing inventory
 * partially due to loss in business: lack of work-force, often including management, that is properly educated and trained
 * lack of educational infrastructure enabling prospective market entrants to respond to the above challenges
 * direct e-tailing (for example, through the Internet) and direct delivery to consumers from manufacturers and suppliers, cutting out any retail middle man.

Method
When discussing the impact of technology on shopping and retail, e-commerce is often the first thing that comes to mind for retailers. However, technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, computer vision and the Internet of Things have used data to transform every part of the shopping experience, from browsing to checkout.

It is important for organizations to embrace digital disruption in order to gain a competitive advantage. When an industry experiences digital disruption, it typically signals that consumer needs are shifting. Retailers enhance their analytics process and make better informed decisions thanks to big data, artificial intelligence, computer vision, and the Internet of Things. The use of data by retailers is mostly evident in the following aspects, based on the above-mentioned new technologies:

 * Enhance marketing by Personalizing customer experience
 * Optimize supply chain management
 * Adjust prices to maximize profits

Many leading brands choose to target tourists who specifically travel to shop or spend money while on vacation. According to the Global Retail Tourism Market Report 2019-2023, the value of the global shopping tourism market was estimated to be around $1.2 trillion in 2018. The report also forecasts that the market will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.7% from 2019 to 2023. In 2023 Kogan Page published a critically acclaimed book "Leading Travel and Tourism Retail", which researched in depth the travel retail sector post COVID.

Consolidation
Among retailers and retails chains a lot of consolidation has appeared over the last couple of decades. Between 1988 and 2010, worldwide 40,788 mergers & acquisitions with a total known value of US$2.255 trillion have been announced. The largest transactions with involvement of retailers in/from the United States have been: the acquisition of Albertson's Inc. for US$17 billion in 2006, the merger between Federated Department Stores Inc with May Department Stores valued at 16.5 bil. USD in 2005 – now Macy's, and the merger between Kmart Holding Corp and Sears Roebuck & Co with a value of US$10.9 billion in 2004.

Between 1985 and 2018 there have been 46,755 mergers or acquisitions conducted globally in the retail sector (either acquirer or target from the retail industry). These deals cumulate to an overall known value of around US$2,561 billion. The three major Retail M&A waves took place in 2000, 2007 and lately in 2017. However the all-time high in terms of number of deals was in 2016 with more than 2,700 deals. In terms of added value 2007 set the record with the US$225 billion.

Here is a list of the top ten largest deals (ranked by volume) in the Retail Industry:

Global top ten retailers
As of 2016, China was the largest retail market in the world.

United States
The National Retail Federation and Kantar annually rank the nation's top retailers according to sales. The National Retail Federation also separately ranks the 100 fastest-growing U.S. retailers based on increases in domestic sales.

Since 1951, the U.S. Census Bureau has published the Retail Sales report every month. It is a measure of consumer spending, an important indicator of the US GDP. Retail firms provide data on the dollar value of their retail sales and inventories. A sample of 12,000 firms is included in the final survey and 5,000 in the advanced one. The advanced estimated data is based on a subsample from the US CB complete retail & food services sample.

Retail is the largest private-sector employer in the United States, supporting 52 million working Americans.

Central Europe
In 2011, the grocery market in six countries of Central Europe was worth nearly €107bn, 2.8% more than the previous year when expressed in local currencies. The increase was generated foremost by the discount stores and supermarket segments, and was driven by the skyrocketing prices of foodstuffs. This information is based on the latest PMR report entitled Grocery retail in Central Europe 2012

World

National accounts show a combined total of retail and wholesale trade, with hotels and restaurants. in 2012 the sector provides over a fifth of GDP in tourist-oriented island economies, as well as in other major countries such as Brazil, Pakistan, Russia, and Spain. In all four of the latter countries, this fraction is an increase over 1970, but there are other countries where the sector has declined since 1970, sometimes in absolute terms, where other sectors have replaced its role in the economy. In the United States the sector has declined from 19% of GDP to 14%, though it has risen in absolute terms from $4,500 to $7,400 per capita per year. In China the sector has grown from 7.3% to 11.5%, and in India even more, from 8.4% to 18.7%. Emarketer predicts China will have the largest retail market in the world in 2016.

In 2016, China became the largest retail market in the world.

In the Republic of Armenia, retail trade has been increasing recently. In October 2022, it increased by 23.1% year by year, which was the most considerable rise since April 2021, faster than the 20.7 per cent increase recorded a month earlier. Retail dropped by 1.9% after accumulating 2.1%in the earlier month. For the first 10 months of 2022, retail sales increased by 15.5% by measuring the exact time of 2021. Among its bordering countries, on retail trade percentage of GDP, Armenia ranks more increased than Turkey, but it is still lower than Georgia.

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Talk:Counties of Sweden

Untitled
The County Councils link to the counties. I think having two lists is a bit confusing. It may be better to put the names of each County Council, without link, after the name of the county, like this:

Counties with the name of the County Councils

Blekinge län - Landstinget Blekinge

Patrick 10:54 Feb 15, 2003 (UTC)

 * I made the conversion and added the capitals Docu 11:25 Feb 15, 2003 (UTC)

There is a new project launched at WikiProject Swedish counties. The aim is to create a uniform template for the Swedish county entries similar to WikiProject Countries or WikiProject U.S. States. Additional input and coordination with the Swedish Wikipedia is welcomed. The first test of the new template can be seen for Halland.

There is also a separate project for WikiProject Swedish provinces or landskap. It is necessary to separate counties and provinces because they only match in a few cases. Redgarding naming conventions counties should be separated from provinces in the same way that counties are separated from cities with the same name, like Kalmar (county). /Mic 20:32 Feb 26, 2003 (UTC)

The article has been written by someone who does not have English as his first language.

From counties to regions?
Can anyone provide confirmation or links concerning the prospects of replacing the current counties with larger regions? According to the article, these potential regions would then resemble the upcoming reorganization in Denmark and their size would be on par with the EU NUTS regions. :)  // Big Adamsky •  BA's talk page 21:28, 23 March 2006 (UTC)

Counties (län) and landsting/regions
There are some misunderstandings about this. Malmöhus County and Kristianstad County were amalgamated some years ago. The new county is Skåne County. But it is still a län like all others. The County Coucils (landsting) were also amalgamated. The new Council is commonly referred to as Region Skåne. There is a fundamental difference between the two. The län is a central government agency and the landsting is a local government entity. Both covering the same territory, but with different tasks. It is the same thing with Västra Götaland County. --Muniswede 21:46, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

County names
In 2008 User:Domino theory changed several names of the former counties. But they form a unity with the current counties. I will change the names back. Some of these old entities existed until the 1990s... TakakaCounty (talk) 23:17, 23 August 2010 (UTC)

Restore county names
Please restore the old names of items in Category:Former counties of Sweden. Domino theory moved them to new names in 2008, only some have been fixed, e.g. Convention for counties of Sweden is "X County" not "County of X", see Category:Counties of Sweden
 * Gothenburg and Bohus County in 2013 by User:Muniswede
 * Älvsborg County in 2011 by User:Muniswede
 * Malmöhus County in 2011 by User:CapitalR
 * Kristianstad County in 2011 by User:CapitalR

Eldizzino (talk) 12:58, 7 July 2015 (UTC)
 * ✅ Anthony Appleyard (talk) 14:01, 7 July 2015 (UTC)

Move discussion in progress
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:Regional councils of Sweden which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 12:47, 4 March 2020 (UTC)

Wrong picture
The map on the top right section of the article is showing the traditional provinces of Sweden, not the current counties of Sweden (which the article is about). Further down in the article, the correct map of counties is shown, though. Could someone fix? --98.128.186.101 (talk) 23:31, 25 March 2021 (UTC)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Talk:Counties of Sweden


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Foreign Affairs

Foreign Affairs is an American magazine of international relations and U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership organization and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs. Founded on 15 September 1922, the print magazine is published every two months, while the website publishes articles daily and anthologies every other month.

Foreign Affairs is considered one of the United States' most influential foreign-policy magazines. It has published many seminal articles, including George Kennan's "X Article" (1947) and Samuel P. Huntington's "The Clash of Civilizations" (1993).

Leading academics, public officials, and members of the policy community regularly contribute to the magazine. Recent Foreign Affairs authors include Robert O. Keohane, Hillary Clinton, Donald H. Rumsfeld, Ashton Carter, Colin L. Powell, Francis Fukuyama, David Petraeus, Zbigniew Brzezinski, John J. Mearsheimer, Stanley McChrystal, Christopher R. Hill and Joseph Nye.

History
The Council on Foreign Relations, founded in the summer of 1921, primarily counted diplomats, financiers, scholars, and lawyers among its members. Its founding charter declared its purpose should be to "afford a continuous conference on international questions affecting the United States, by bringing together experts on statecraft, finance, industry, education, and science." In its first year, the Council engaged primarily in discourse via meetings and small discussion groups, however, eventually it decided to seek a wider audience and it began publishing Foreign Affairs on 15 September 1922 on a quarterly basis.

The Council named Professor Archibald Cary Coolidge of Harvard University as the journal's first editor. As Coolidge was unwilling to move from Boston to New York, Hamilton Fish Armstrong, a Princeton alumnus and a European correspondent of the New York Evening Post, was appointed managing editor and worked New York, handling the day-to-day mechanics of publishing the journal. Armstrong chose the distinctive light blue color for the cover of the magazine, while his sisters, Margaret and Helen, designed the logo and lettering respectively.

Foreign Affairs is a successor publication of the Journal of International Relations (which ran from 1910 to 1922), which in turn was a successor to the Journal of Race Development (which ran from 1911 to 1919, the title reflecting concerns about race tensions and race "mixing" in a period when empires were beginning to be in question).

1922–1945
The lead article in the first issue of Foreign Affairs was written by the former secretary of state under Theodore Roosevelt's administration, Elihu Root. The article argued that the United States had become a world power, and that as such the general population needed to be better informed about international matters. John Foster Dulles, then a financial expert attached to the American Commission to Negotiate Peace, who would later become secretary of state under Dwight D. Eisenhower, also contributed an article to the inaugural issue of Foreign Affairs on Allied debt following World War I.

In 1925, Foreign Affairs published a series of articles, entitled "Worlds of Color", by prominent African American intellectual W. E. B. Du Bois. DuBois, a personal friend of Armstrong, wrote mainly about race issues and imperialism. Although in the early days of publication the journal did not have many female authors, in the late 1930s American journalist for Time magazine Dorothy Thompson would contribute articles.

1945–1991

The journal rose to its greatest prominence after World War II when foreign relations became central to United States politics, and the United States became a powerful actor on the global scene. Several extremely important articles were published in Foreign Affairs, including the reworking of George F. Kennan's "Long Telegram", which first publicized the doctrine of containment that would form the basis of American Cold War policy.

Louis Halle, a member of the U.S. Policy Planning Staff, also wrote an influential article in Foreign Affairs in 1950. His article, "On a Certain Impatience with Latin America", created the anticommunist intellectual framework that justified U.S. policy towards Latin America in the Cold War era. Halle's article described that the encouragement of democracy in postwar Latin America had ended. He demonstrated disgust over Latin America's inability to assume autonomy and to become democratic. His rationalization towards Latin America was later used to justify U.S. efforts to overthrow the left-leaning Guatemalan government.

Eleven U.S. secretaries of state have written essays in Foreign Affairs.

1991–present
Since the end of the Cold War, and especially after the 9/11 attacks, the journal's readership has grown significantly. , Foreign Affairs total readership is 303,000 for the print magazine and it has 1.2 million unique visitors per month for the website.

In the Summer 1993 issue, Foreign Affairs published Samuel P. Huntington's influential "Clash of Civilizations?" article. In the article, Huntington argued that "the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural."

In the November/December 2003 issue of Foreign Affairs, Kenneth Maxwell wrote a review of Peter Kornbluh's book The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity and Accountability, which gave rise to a controversy about Henry Kissinger's relationship to the regime of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and to Operation Condor. Maxwell claims that key Council on Foreign Relations members, acting at Kissinger's behest, put pressure on Foreign Affairs editor James Hoge to give the last word in a subsequent exchange about the review to William D. Rogers, a close associate of Kissinger, rather than to Maxwell; this went against established Foreign Affairs policy.

Then-opposition leader and former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko caused a stir by publishing an article entitled "Containing Russia" in the May–June 2007 issue of Foreign Affairs accusing Russia under Vladimir Putin of expansionism and urging the rest of Europe to stand against him. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov wrote an article in response, but he withdrew it, citing "censorship" from the Foreign Affairs editorial board. Tymoshenko's party went on to win the 2007 elections and she became Prime Minister once again.

In 2009, Foreign Affairs launched its new website, ForeignAffairs.com, which offers both print content and online-only features.

Beginning with the January/February 2013 issue, Foreign Affairs was redesigned including that the cover would have an image. Per Politico's story on the redesign: "As part of an effort to expand its appeal beyond the foreign policy establishment, every issue of Foreign Affairs will now feature a photograph on the cover and an extensive interview with a leading newsmaker."

Book reviews
Since its inception, Foreign Affairs has included a long book review section, typically reviewing 50 or more books per issue. The magazine's first editor, Archibald Cary Coolidge, asked his Harvard colleague, William L. Langer, a historian and World War I veteran, to run the section. Langer initially had full control over the magazine's book reviews and wrote all the reviews himself. A month before the reviews were due, the Foreign Affairs office in New York would ship approximately one hundred books to Langer for review and within two weeks he would return his completed reviews for the next issue.

Beginning with the first issue in 1922, Harry Elmer Barnes authored a reoccurring section titled “Some Recent Books on International Relations”. By 1924, the Foreign Affairs website lists Barnes as Bibliographical Editor.

In the late 1930s, the review section was broken down into several categories. Currently, the Foreign Affairs reviews are broken down into long review essays, which are placed at the front of the books section, and the "Recent Books" section, where shorter reviews are featured. The "Recent Books" section is further broken down into the following subject categories.

 * Political and Legal, reviewed by G. John Ikenberry
 * Economic, Social, and Environmental, reviewed by Barry Eichengreen
 * Military, Scientific, and Technological, reviewed by Lawrence D. Freedman
 * The United States, reviewed by Jessica T. Mathews
 * Western Europe, reviewed by Andrew Moravcsik
 * Western Hemisphere, reviewed by Richard Feinberg
 * Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics, reviewed by Maria Lipman
 * Middle East, reviewed by Lisa Anderson
 * Asia and Pacific, reviewed by Andrew J. Nathan
 * Africa, reviewed by Nicolas van de Walle

The majority of the book reviews featured in the "Recent Books" section are reviewed by the same person; however, other reviewers contribute to the "Recent Books" section on occasion.

Influence
Foreign Affairs is considered an important forum for debate among academics and policy makers. In 1996, Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott noted: "Virtually everyone I know in the foreign policy-national security area of the Government is attentive to Foreign Affairs."

According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2014 impact factor of 2.009, ranking it 6th out of 85 journals in the category "International Relations".

Editors

 * Daniel Kurtz-Phelan: 2021–present
 * Gideon Rose: 2010–2021
 * James F. Hoge, Jr.: 1992–2010
 * William G. Hyland: 1984–1992
 * William P. Bundy: 1972–1984
 * Hamilton Fish Armstrong: 1928–1972
 * Archibald Cary Coolidge: 1922–1928

title: Foreign Affairs


text:
Brahmaputra River

The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet (China), Northeastern India, and Bangladesh. It is known as Brahmaputra or Luit in Assamese, Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, and Jamuna River in Bengali. It is the 9th largest river in the world by discharge, and the 15th longest.

It originates in the Manasarovar Lake region, near Mount Kailash, on the northern side of the Himalayas in Burang County of Tibet where it is known as the Yarlung Tsangpo River. The Brahmaputra flows along southern Tibet to break through the Himalayas in great gorges (including the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon) and into Arunachal Pradesh. It enters India near the village of Gelling in Arunachal Pradesh and flows southwest through the Assam Valley as the Brahmaputra and south through Bangladesh as the Jamuna (not to be confused with the Yamuna of India). In the vast Ganges Delta, it merges with the Ganges, popularly known as the Padma in Bangladesh, and becomes the Meghna and ultimately empties into the Bay of Bengal.

At 3969 km long, the Brahmaputra is an important river for irrigation and transportation in the region. The average depth of the river is 30 m and its maximum depth is 135 m (at Sadiya). The river is prone to catastrophic flooding in the spring when the Himalayan snow melts. The average discharge of the Brahmaputra is about 19800 m3/s, and floods reach about 100000 m3/s. It is a classic example of a braided river and is highly susceptible to channel migration and avulsion. It is also one of the few rivers in the world that exhibits a tidal bore. It is navigable for most of its length.

The Brahmaputra drains the Himalayas east of the Indo-Nepal border, south-central portion of the Tibetan plateau above the Ganga basin, south-eastern portion of Tibet, the Patkai hills, the northern slopes of the Meghalaya hills, the Assam plains, and northern Bangladesh. The basin, especially south of Tibet, is characterized by high levels of rainfall. Kangchenjunga (8,586 m) is the only peak above 8,000 m and hence is the highest point within the Brahmaputra basin.

The Brahmaputra's upper course was long unknown, and its identity with the Yarlung Tsangpo was only established by exploration in 1884–86. The river is often called the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra river.

The lower reaches are sacred to Hindus. While most rivers on the Indian subcontinent have female names, this river has a rare male name. Brahmaputra means "son of Brahma" in Sanskrit.

Names
It is known by various names in different regional languages: Brôhmôputrô in Assamese; Yarlung Tsangpo;. It is also called Tsangpo-Brahmaputra and red river of India (when referring to the whole river including the stretch within the Tibet Autonomous Region). In its Tibetan and Indian names, the river is unusually masculine in gender.

Tibet

The upper reaches of the Brahmaputra River, known as the Yarlung Tsangpo from the Tibetan language, originates on the Angsi Glacier, near Mount Kailash, located on the northern side of the Himalayas in Burang County of Tibet. The source of the river was earlier thought to be on the Chemayungdung glacier, which covers the slopes of the Himalayas about 60 mi southeast of Lake Manasarovar in southwestern Tibet.

The river is 3969 km long, and its drainage area is 712035 km2 according to the new findings, while previous documents showed its length varied from 2916 to 3364 km and its drainage area between 520,000 and 1.73 million km2.

From its source, the river runs for nearly 1100 km in a generally easterly direction between the main range of the Himalayas to the south and the Kailas Range to the north. In Tibet, the Tsangpo receives a number of tributaries. The most important left-bank tributaries are the Raka Zangbo (Raka Tsangpo), which joins the river west of Xigazê (Shigatse), and the Lhasa (Kyi), which flows past the Tibetan capital of Lhasa and joins the Tsangpo at Qüxü. The Nyang River joins the Tsangpo from the north at Zela (Tsela Dzong). On the right bank, a second river called the Nyang Qu (Nyang Chu) meets the Tsangpo at Xigazê.

After passing Pi (Pe) in Tibet, the river turns suddenly to the north and northeast and cuts a course through a succession of great narrow gorges between the mountainous massifs of Gyala Peri and Namcha Barwa in a series of rapids and cascades. Thereafter, the river turns south and southwest and flows through a deep gorge (the "Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon") across the eastern extremity of the Himalayas with canyon walls that extend upward for 5000 m and more on each side. During that stretch, the river crosses the China-India line of actual control to enter northern Arunachal Pradesh, where it is known as the Dihang (or Siang) River, and turns more southerly.

Arunachal Pradesh

The Yarlung Tsangpo leaves the part of Tibet to enter Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, where the river is called Siang. It makes a very rapid descent from its original height in Tibet and finally appears in the plains, where it is called Dihang. It flows for about 35 km southward after which, it is joined by the Dibang River and the Lohit River at the head of the Assam Valley. Below the Lohit, the river is called Brahmaputra and Doima (mother of water) and Burlung-Buthur by native Bodo tribals, it then enters the state of Assam, and becomes very wide—as wide as 20 km in parts of Assam.

The reason for such an unusual course and drastic change is that the river is antecedent to the Himalayas, meaning that it had existed before them and has entrenched itself since they started rising.

Assam
The Dihang, winding out of the mountains, turns towards the southeast and descends into a low-lying basin as it enters northeastern Assam state. Just west of the town of Sadiya, the river again turns to the southwest and is joined by two mountain streams, the Lohit, and the Dibang. Below that confluence, about 1450 km from the Bay of Bengal, the river becomes known conventionally as the Brahmaputra ("Son of Brahma"). In Assam, the river is mighty, even in the dry season, and during the rains, its banks are more than 8 km apart. As the river follows its braided 700 km course through the valley, it receives several rapidly flowing Himalayan streams, including the Subansiri, Kameng, Bhareli, Dhansiri, Manas, Champamati, Saralbhanga, and Sankosh Rivers. The main tributaries from the hills and from the plateau to the south are the Burhi Dihing, the Disang, the Dikhu, and the Kopili.

Between Dibrugarh and Lakhimpur Districts, the river divides into two channels—the northern Kherkutia channel and the southern Brahmaputra channel. The two channels join again about 100 km downstream, forming the Majuli island, which is the largest river island in the world. At Guwahati, near the ancient pilgrimage centre of Hajo, the Brahmaputra cuts through the rocks of the Shillong Plateau, and is at its narrowest at 1 km bank-to-bank. The terrain of this area made it logistically ideal for the Battle of Saraighat, the military confrontation between the Mughal Empire and the Ahom Kingdom in March 1671. The first combined railroad/roadway bridge across the Brahmaputra was constructed at Saraighat. It was opened to traffic in April 1962.

The environment of the Brahmaputra floodplains in Assam have been described as the Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests ecoregion.

Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, the Brahmaputra is joined by the Teesta River (or Tista), one of its largest tributaries. Below the Tista, the Brahmaputra splits into two distributary branches. The western branch, which contains the majority of the river's flow, continues due south as the Jamuna (Jomuna) to merge with the lower Ganga, called the Padma River (Pôdma). The eastern branch, formerly the larger, but now much smaller, is called the lower or Old Brahmaputra (Brommoputro). It curves southeast to join the Meghna River near Dhaka. The Padma and Meghna converge near Chandpur and flow out into the Bay of Bengal. This final part of the river is called Meghna.

The Brahmaputra enters the plains of Bangladesh after turning south around the Garo Hills below Dhuburi, India. After flowing past Chilmari, Bangladesh, it is joined on its right bank by the Tista River and then follows a 240 km course due south as the Jamuna River. (South of Gaibanda, the Old Brahmaputra leaves the left bank of the mainstream and flows past Jamalpur and Mymensingh to join the Meghna River at Bhairab Bazar.) Before its confluence with the Ganga, the Jamuna receives the combined waters of the Baral, Atrai, and Hurasagar Rivers on its right bank and becomes the point of departure of the large Dhaleswari River on its left bank. A tributary of the Dhaleswari, the Buriganga ("Old Ganga"), flows past Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, and joins the Meghna River above Munshiganj.

The Jamuna joins with the Ganga north of Goalundo Ghat, below which, as the Padma, their combined waters flow to the southeast for a distance of about 120 km. After several smaller channels branch off to feed the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta to the south, the main body of the Padma reaches its confluence with the Meghna River near Chandpur and then enters the Bay of Bengal through the Meghna estuary and lesser channels flowing through the delta. The growth of the Ganga-Brahmaputra Delta is dominated by tidal processes.

The Ganga Delta, fed by the waters of numerous rivers, including the Ganga and Brahmaputra, is 59570 km2, one of the largest river deltas in the world.

Hydrology
The Ganga-Brahmaputra system has the third-greatest average discharge of the world's rivers—roughly 30,770 m3 per second; and the river Brahmaputra alone supplies about 19,800 m3 per second of the total discharge. The rivers' combined suspended sediment load of about 1.87 billion tonnes (1.84 billion tons) per year is the world's highest.

In the past, the lower course of the Brahmaputra was different and passed through the Jamalpur and Mymensingh districts. In an 8.8 magnitude earthquake on 2 April 1762, however, the main channel of the Brahmaputra at Bhahadurabad point was switched southwards and opened as Jamuna due to the result of tectonic uplift of the Madhupur tract.

Climate
Rising temperature is one of the major causes of snow-melting at the upper Brahmaputra catchment. The discharge of the river Brahmaputra is highly affected by the melting of snow at the upper part of its catchment. Then of river flow due to the melting of snow in the river Brahmaputra basin affects the downstream discharge of the river. This increase in discharge due to the significant retreat of snow gives rise to severe catastrophic problems such as flood and erosion.

Discharge
The Brahmaputra River is characterized by its significant rates of sediment discharge, the large and variable flows, along with its rapid channel aggradations and accelerated rates of basin denudation. Over time, the deepening of the Bengal Basin caused by erosion will result in the increase in hydraulic radius, and hence allowing for the huge accumulation of sediments fed from the Himalayan erosion by efficient sediment transportation. The thickness of the sediment accumulated above the Precambrian basement has increased over the years from a few hundred meters to over 18 km in the Bengal fore-deep to the south. The ongoing subsidence of the Bengal Basin and the high rate of Himalayan uplift continues to contribute to the large water and sediment discharges of fine sand and silt, with 1% clay, in the Brahmaputra River.

Climatic change plays a crucial role in affecting the basin hydrology. Throughout the year, there is a significant rise in hydrograph, with a broad peak between July and September. The Brahmaputra River experiences two high-water seasons, one in early summer caused by snowmelt in the mountains, and one in late summer caused by runoff from monsoon rains. The river flow is strongly influenced by snow and ice melting of the glaciers, which are located mainly on the eastern Himalaya regions in the upstream parts of the basin. The snow and glacier melt contribution to the total annual runoff is about 27%, while the annual rainfall contributes to about 1.9 m and 19830 m3/s of discharge. The highest recorded daily discharge in the Brahmaputra at Pandu was 72726 m3/s August 1962 while the lowest was 1757 m3/s in February 1968. The increased rates of snow and glacial melt are likely to increase summer flows in some river systems for a few decades, followed by a reduction in flow as the glaciers disappear and snowfall diminishes. This is particularly true for the dry season when water availability is crucial for the irrigation systems.

Floodplain evolution
The course of the Brahmaputra River has changed drastically in the past two and a half centuries, moving its river course westwards for a distance of about 80 km, leaving its old river course, appropriately named the old Brahmaputra river, behind. In the past, the floodplain of the old river course had soils which were more properly formed compared to graded sediments on the operating Jamuna river. This change of river course resulted in modifications to the soil-forming process, which include acidification, the breakdown of clays and buildup of organic matter, with the soils showing an increasing amount of biotic homogenization, mottling, the coating around Peds and maturing soil arrangement, shape and pattern. In the future, the consequences of local ground subsidence coupled with flood prevention propositions, for instance, localised breakwaters, that increase flood-plain water depths outside the water breakers, may alter the water levels of the floodplains. Throughout the years, bars, scroll bars, and sand dunes are formed at the edge of the flood plain by deposition. The height difference of the channel topography is often not more than 1-2 m. Furthermore, flooding over the history of the river has caused the formation of river levees due to deposition from the overbank flow. The height difference between the levee top and the surrounding floodplains is typically 1 m along small channels and 2-3 m along major channels. Crevasse splay, a sedimentary fluvial deposit which forms when a stream breaks its natural or artificial levees and deposits sediment on a floodplain, are often formed due to a breach in the levee, forming a lobe of sediments which progrades onto the adjacent floodplain. Lastly, flood basins are often formed between the levees of adjacent rivers.

Flooding
During the monsoon season (June–October), floods are a very common occurrence. Deforestation in the Brahmaputra watershed has resulted in increased siltation levels, flash floods, and soil erosion in critical downstream habitat, such as the Kaziranga National Park in middle Assam. Occasionally, massive flooding causes huge losses to crops, life, and property. Periodic flooding is a natural phenomenon which is ecologically important because it helps maintain the lowland grasslands and associated wildlife. Periodic floods also deposit fresh alluvium, replenishing the fertile soil of the Brahmaputra River Valley. Thus flooding, agriculture, and agricultural practices are closely connected.

The effects of flooding can be devastating and cause significant damage to crops and houses, serious bank erosive with consequent loss of homesteads, school and land, and loss of many lives, livestock, and fisheries. During the 1998 flood, over 70% of the land area of Bangladesh was inundated, affecting 31 million people and 1 million homesteads. In the 1998 flood which had an unusually long duration from July to September, claimed 918 human lives and was responsible for damaging 1600 km of roads and 6000 km embankments, and affecting 6000 km2 of standing crops. The 2004 floods, over 25% of the population of Bangladesh or 36 million people, were affected by the floods; 800 people died; 952 000 houses were destroyed and 1.4 million were badly damaged; 24 000 educational institutions were affected including the destruction of 1200 primary schools, 2 million governments and private tube wells were affected, over 3 million latrines were damaged or washed away, this increases the risks of waterborne diseases including diarrhea and cholera. Also, 1.1 e6ha of the rice crop was submerged and lost before it could be harvested, with 7% of the yearly aus (early season) rice crop lost; 270000 ha of grazing land was affected, 5600 livestock perished together with 254 00 poultry and 63 e6t of lost fish production.

Flood-control measures are taken by the water resource department and the Brahmaputra Board, but until now the flood problem remains unsolved. At least a third of the land of Majuli Island has been eroded by the river. Recently, it is suggested that a highway protected by concrete mat along the river bank and excavation of the river bed can curb this menace. This project, named the Brahmaputra River Restoration Project, is yet to be implemented by the government. Recently the Central Government approved the construction of Brahmaputra Express Highways.

Channel morphology
The course of the Brahmaputra River has changed dramatically over the past 250 years, with evidence of large-scale avulsion, in the period 1776–1850, of 80 km from east of the Madhupur tract to the west of it. Prior to 1843, the Brahmaputra flowed within the channel now termed the "Old Brahmaputra". The banks of the river are mostly weakly cohesive sand and silts, which usually erodes through large scale slab failure, where previously deposited materials undergo scour and bank erosion during flood periods. Presently, the river's erosion rate has decreased to 30 m per year as compared to 150 m per year from 1973 to 1992. This erosion has, however, destroyed so much land that it has caused 0.7 million people to become homeless due to loss of land.

Several studies have discussed the reasons for the avulsion of the river into its present course, and have suggested a number of reasons including tectonic activity, switches in the upstream course of the Teesta River, the influence of increased discharge, catastrophic floods and river capture into an old river course. From an analysis of maps of the river between 1776 and 1843, it was concluded in a study that the river avulsion was more likely gradual than catastrophic and sudden, and may have been generated by bank erosion, perhaps around a large mid-channel bar, causing a diversion of the channel into the existing floodplain channel.

The Brahmaputra channel is governed by the peak and low flow periods during which its bed undergoes tremendous modification. The Brahmaputra's bank line migration is inconsistent with time. The Brahmaputra river bed has widened significantly since 1916 and appears to be shifting more towards the south than towards the north. Together with the contemporary slow migration of the river, the left bank is being eroded away faster than the right bank.

River engineering
The Brahmaputra River experiences high levels of bank erosion (usually via slab failure) and channel migration caused by its strong current, lack of riverbank vegetation, and loose sand and silt which compose its banks. It is thus difficult to build permanent structures on the river, and protective structures designed to limit the river's erosional effects often face numerous issues during and after construction. In fact, a 2004 report by the Bangladesh Disaster and Emergency Sub-Group (BDER) has stated that several of such protective systems have 'just failed'. However, some progress has been made in the form of construction works which stabilize sections of the river, albeit with the need for heavy maintenance. The Bangabandhu Bridge, the only bridge to span the river's major distributary, the Jamuna, was thus opened in June 1998. Constructed at a narrow braid belt of the river, it is 4.8 km long with a platform 18.5 m wide, and it is used to carry railroad traffic as well as gas, power and telecommunication lines. Due to the variable nature of the river, the prediction of the river's future course is crucial in planning upstream engineering to prevent flooding on the bridge.

China had built the Zangmu Dam in the upper course of the Brahmaputra River in the Tibet region and it was operationalised on 13 October 2015.

Earlier history
The Kachari group called the river "Dilao", "Tilao". Early Greek accounts of Curtius and Strabo give its name as Dyardanes (Ancient greek Δυαρδάνης) and Oidanes. In the past, the course of the lower Brahmaputra was different and passed through the Jamalpur and Mymensingh districts. Some water still flows through that course, now called the Old Brahmaputra, as a distributary of the main channel.

A question about the river system in Bangladesh is when and why the Brahmaputra changed its main course, at the site of the Jamuna and the "Old Brahmaputra" fork that can be seen by comparing modern maps to historic maps before the 1800s. The Brahmaputra likely flowed directly south along its present main channel for much of the time since the last glacial maximum, switching back and forth between the two courses several times throughout the Holocene.

One idea about the most recent avulsion is that the change in the course of the main waters of the Brahmaputra took place suddenly in 1787, the year of the heavy flooding of the river Tista.

In the middle of the 18th century, at least three fair-sized streams flowed between the Rajshahi and Dhaka Divisions, viz., the Daokoba, a branch of the Tista, the Monash or Konai, and the Salangi. The Lahajang and the Elengjany were also important rivers. In Renault's time, the Brahmaputra as a first step towards securing a more direct course to the sea by leaving the Mahdupur Jungle to the east began to send a considerable volume of water down the Jinai or Jabuna from Jamalpur into the Monash and Salangi. These rivers gradually coalesced and kept shifting to the west till they met the Daokoba, which was showing an equally rapid tendency to cut towards the east. The junction of these rivers gave the Brahmaputra a course worthy of her immense power, and the rivers to right and left silted up. In Renault's Altas they very much resemble the rivers of Jessore, which dried up after the hundred-mouthed Ganga had cut her new channel to join the Meghna at the south of the Munshiganj subdivision.

In 1809, Francis Buchanan-Hamilton wrote that the new channel between Bhawanipur and Dewanranj "was scarcely inferior to the mighty river, and threatens to sweep away the intermediate country". By 1830, the old channel had been reduced to its present insignificance. It was navigable by country boats throughout the year and by launches only during rains, but at the point as low as Jamalpur it was formidable throughout the cold weather. Similar was the position for two or three months just below Mymensingh also.

International cooperation
The waters of the River Brahmaputra are shared by Tibet, India, and Bangladesh. In the 1990s and 2000s, there was repeated speculation that mentioned Chinese plans to build a dam at the Great Bend, with a view to diverting the waters to the north of the country. This has been denied by the Chinese government for many years. At the Kathmandu Workshop of Strategic Foresight Group in August 2009 on Water Security in the Himalayan Region, which brought together in a rare development leading hydrologists from the basin countries, the Chinese scientists argued that it was not feasible for China to undertake such a diversion. However, on 22 April 2010, China confirmed that it was indeed building the Zangmu Dam on the Brahmaputra in Tibet, but assured India that the project would not have any significant effect on the downstream flow to India. This claim has also been reiterated by the Government of India, in an attempt to assuage domestic criticism of Chinese dam construction on the river, but is one that remains hotly debated. Recent years have seen an intensification of grassroots opposition, especially in the state of Assam, against Chinese upstream dam building, as well as growing criticism of the Indian government for its perceived failure to respond appropriately to Chinese hydropower plans.

In a meeting of scientists at Dhaka at 2010, 25 leading experts from the basin countries issued a Dhaka Declaration on Water Security calling for the exchange of information in low-flow periods, and other means of collaboration. Even though the 1997 UN Watercourses Convention does not prevent any of the basin countries from building a dam upstream, customary law offers some relief to the lower riparian countries. There is also the potential for China, India, and Bangladesh to cooperate on transboundary water navigation.

Significance to people
The lives of many millions of Indian and Bangladeshi citizens are reliant on the Brahmaputra river. Its delta is home to 130 million people and 600 000 people live on the riverine islands. These people rely on the annual 'normal' flood to bring moisture and fresh sediments to the floodplain soils, hence providing the necessities for agricultural and marine farming. In fact, two of the three seasonal rice varieties (aus and aman) cannot survive without the floodwater. Furthermore, the fish caught both on the floodplain during flood season and from the many floodplain ponds are the main source of protein for many rural populations.

Dams and hydropower projects
Brahmaputra and Ganges floodwaters can be supplied to most lands in India by constructing a coastal reservoir to store water on the Bay of Bengal sea area.

Current bridges

From east to west till Parshuram Kund, then from southwest to northeast from Parshuram Kund to Patum, finally from east to southwest from Parshuram Kund to Burhidhing:

 * 1) Sankosh Bridge near Gossaigaon on a tributary of the Brahmaputra on West Bengal-Assam border. 675 m.
 * 2) Sankosh Railway Bridge near Gossaigaon on a tributary of the Brahmaputra on West Bengal-Assam border. 675 m
 * 3) Chilarai Bridge near Rupsi Airport on a tributary of Brahmaputra. 650 m
 * 4) Golakganj Bridge just south of Chilarai Bridge near Rupsi Airport on a tributary of Brahmaputra. 625 m
 * 5) Naranarayan Setu, road and rail bridge near Bongaigaon in Assam, 2285 m
 * 6) Old Saraighat Bridge, road and rail bridge near Guwahati in Assam. 1495 m
 * 7) New Saraighat Bridge, road bridge near Guwahati in Assam. 1521 m
 * 8) Kolia Bhomora Setu, road bridge near Tezpur in Assam, 3025 m
 * 9) Bogibeel Bridge, road and rail bridge near Dibrugarh in Assam, 4940 m, The Longest on Brahmaputra River.
 * 10) Guwahati–North Guwahati Bridge, road bridge on Brahmaputra river in Guwahati, North Guwahati in Assam.
 * 11) Dhola–Sadiya Bridge (Bhupen Hazarika Bridge), road bridge on Brahmaputra river near Sadiya in Assam, 9150 m long
 * 12) Dibang River Bridge, road bridge on Brahmaputra's River Lohit tributary in Arunachal Pradesh, 6200 m long connects Bomjir and Malek
 * 13) Parshuram Kund road bridge on Brahmaputra's Lohit river tributary in Arunachal Pradesh, 2600 m long
 * 14) Shilluk-Dambuk Bridge, road bridge in Arunachal Pradesh on Brahmaputra's Lohit river tributary between Silluk-Dambuk. 4.4 km long.
 * 15) Ranaghat Bridge on the Brahmaputra at Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh. 3375 m
 * 16) Patum Bridge on Brahmaputra's tributary near Aalo (formerly Along) in Arunachal Pradesh. 1700 m
 * 17) Wakro Bridge, road bridge on Brahmaputra's tributary Lohit river in Arunachal Pradesh, 1500 m
 * 18) Nao-Dihing Bridge road bridge on Brahmaputra's tributary Dihing river near Margherita, Assam and Ledo in Assam. 1625 m long
 * 19) NEEPCO Bridge road bridge on Brahmaputra's tributary Buriding river near Jeypore, Assam. 2025 m long
 * 20) Naharkatiya Bridge road bridge on Brahmaputra's tributary Dihing river near Naharkatiya in Assam. 961 m
 * 21) Burhidhing Railway Bridge road bridge on Brahmaputra's tributary Dihing river near Khowang in Assam. 916 m
 * 22) PM Modi Launches Mahabahu-Brahmaputra Initiative Ahead Of Polls In Assam

Approved and under-construction bridges
9 new bridges, including 3 bridges in Guwahati (New Saraighat bridge parallel to the old bridge, and 2 new bridges in greenfield locations at Bharalumukh & Kurua), 1 new bridge in Tezpur parallel to the old bridge, and 5 greenfield bridges in new locations (Dhubri, Bijoynagar, Gohpur tunnel, Nemtighat, & Sivasagar) elsewhere in Assam have been approved. 5 of these were announced in 2017 by India's Minister for MoRTH, Nitin Gadkari.

From east to west:

(a). Jorhat-Nematighat bridge at Jorhat on Brahmaputra in Assam and combined with Louit Khablu Bridge on a tributary it will connect Jorhat-Tezpur, 4225 m, (b). Louit Khablu Bridge on a tributary of Brahmaputra and combined with Jorhat-Nematighat bridge it will connect Jorhat-Tezpur cities, 5.29 km long.
 * 1) Dhubri: Dhubri-Phulbari bridge, road and rail bridge in Assam, near tri-junction of east Meghalaya, west Assam and north Bangladesh  12625 m
 * 2) Bijoynagar: Palasbari-Sualkuchi bridge, to connect Nalbari to Bijoynagar, Guwahati Airport & Shillong.
 * 3) Guwahati: New Saraighat Bridge is rail-cum-road bridge parallel to old bridge, will be completed by December 2023.
 * 4) Guwahati: Bharalumukh-Machkhua bridge, 4050 m in central Guwahati connecting North Guwahati with Guwahati (Pan Bazar and Bharalmukh) will be operational in 2023.
 * 5) Guwahati: Narangi-Kurua bridge, 675 m east of Guwahati was approved in 2022.
 * 6) Tezpur: Bhomoraguri-Tezpur Bridge (few meters parallel to existing Kalia Bhomara Bridge at Bhomoraguri suburb of Tezpur town in Assam, 3250 m was partially complete in 2021.
 * 7) Gohpur: Numaligarh-Gohpur Bridge under-water tunnel between Gohpur (Biswanath district) and Numaligarh (Golaghat district in Assam  4500 m
 * 8) Jorhat: Jorhat-Tezpur twin bridges:
 * 1) Sivasagar: Disangmukh-Tekeliphuta Bridge between Disangmukh-Tekeliphuta near Sivasagar in Assam  2.8 km

Proposed and awaiting approval by MoRTH

 * Bridges on Brahmaputra: These will reduce risk of blockades, logistics cost, travel time, boost economy, and enable India's Look-East and Neighbourhood-first connectivity.

 * 1) Barpeta-Nitarkhola Reserve bridge: half-way between Narnarayan Setu (Jogighopa) and Guwahati bridge, will reduce 140 km distance by 100 km to 40 km, vital for east Assam connectivity to south Assam, Meghalaya, Bangladesh and Tripura.
 * 2) Bhuragaon-Kaupati Bridge: near Morigaon half-way between Guwahati and Tezpur, it will reduce 180 km distance by 140 km to 40 km, vital for connecting Tawang and eastern end of East-West Arunachal Industrial Corridor Highway to South Assam, Tripura, Bangladesh, Manipur, Mizoram and Myanmar (Kaladan Project), all of which are vital for tourism and trade.
 * 3) Sadiya Sille-Oyan bridge, 40 km long road including bridges, from Sille-Oyan-Chilling Madhupur-Sadia over Brahmputra river will existing 180 km Sille-Oyan to Sadiya distance by 140 km and existing 150 km Pasighat-Sadiya distance by 110 km. It is vital for National Waterway 2 and East-West Arunachal Industrial Corridor Highway.

 * Bridges on Padma river
 * 1) Dhulian bridge: between Pakur and Malda.

 * Bridges on Subansiri river
 * 1) Narayanpur-Majuli Bridge to connect Narayanpur and Bodti Miri to Majuli Bridge. There is existing NH bridge near Gogamukh in north, another under construction Majuli-North Lakhimpur NH bridge in centre, and Narayanpur-Majuli Bridge in south will be third bridge.

 * Bridges on Manas and Beki rivers: between Chapar and Barpeta on greenfield expressway
 * 1) Chamabati-Oudubi bridge
 * 2) Barjana-Moinbari bridge
 * 3) Balikuri-Barpeta bridge

Under-river tunnel

 * 1) Numaligarh-Gohpur under-river tunnel. The 15.6 km long tunnel, 22 metres below the river bed, will have 18 km approach roads to connect the NH-52 and Numaligarh on NH-37. This total ~33 km route will boost economy and strategic defence connectivity, protect Kaziranga National Park by diverting traffic away from the congested 2-lane highway through the park, shorten 223 km 6 hour long Gohpur-Numaligarh route to 35 km and 30 minutes, This twin tube tunnel, with an under road water drainage and overhead ventilation fans, will have inter-connectivity the twin tubs for evacuation. It will be equipped with sensors, CCTV, automated safety and traffic control systems. It will cost Rs 12,807 crore (US$1.7 billion in 2021).

Present bridges in Bangladesh

 * Bridges on Brahmaputra (Jamuna river)
 * 1) Bangabandhu Bridge (formerly Jamuna Bridge), road and rail bridge connects Siraiganj and Tangail on either side of the river.
 * 2) Bangabandhu Railway Bridge is under contraction railway bridge over Bramhmaputra River. It is connect Bangabandhu Bridge East Railway Station to Bangabandhu West Railway station

 * Bridges on Padma River tributary of Brahmaputra
 * 1) Padma Bridge, road and rail bridge, south of Dhaka.
 * 2) Lalon Shah Bridge road bridge on Padma River tributary of Brahmaputra, near Ishwardi & Pabna.
 * 3) Hardinge Bridge, rail bridge on Padma River next to Lalon Shah Bridge.

Planned bridges in Bangladesh

 * Bridges on Brahmaputra (Jamuna river)
 * 1) Kurigram-Mankachar bridge, rail and road bridge connecting west Meghalaya (Mankachar) and north Bangladesh (Kurigram, Rangpur & Dinajpur) to north West Bengal (Cooch Behar & Siliguri) and Sikkim.
 * 2) Gaibandha-Bakshiganj Bridge, road and rail bridge to connect existing rail and road heads at Gaibandha-Bakshiganj on either side of the river. It will connect southwest Meghalaya (India) & south Assam (Silchar, India) to Bogura (Bangladesh), Malda (India), Bhagalpur (India) as an alternative to the chicken-neck Siliguri Corridor.
 * 3) Bogura-Jamalpur Gaibandha-Bakshiganj Bridge, road and rail bridge to connect Imphal-Silcher to Sylhet-Mymensingh-Bogura to Malda-Gaya-Patna.
 * 4) Shivalya-Golanda-Bhagulpur Bridge, road and rail bridge to connect existing rail and road heads at Siraiganj-Tangail on either side of the river.
 * 5) Chandpur Bridge, rail and road bridge to connect Northeast India (Aizawal-Rikhawdar in Mizoram & Udaipur in Tripura) to Bangladesh (Cumilla-Khulna) and Kolkata.
 * 6) Elisha-Lakshmipur Bridge, rail and road bridge to connect south Mizoram (Lunglei-Talabung) and south Tripura Sabroom to Feni-Barisal-Port of Mongla and Diamond Harbour-Haldia ports.

 * Bridges on Padma river
 * 1) Rajshahi bridge

Tibet (China)
In course of last 64 years, since Tibet became part of China as an Autonomous region, at least 10 Bridges have been built on Brahmaputra River. Currently as per satellite imagery, only 4–5 bridges built on River Brahmaputra have been confirmed. These are as follows as per Google Map Satellite View:-
 * 1) Ziajhulinzhen Bridge, Built in 2009–2012 at 4350 m, this is the Second longest Bridge on Brahmaputra river.
 * 2) Nyingchi Bridge, built in 2014 to connect Nyingchi with Lhasa by railway, this bridge is 750 m long.
 * 3) Lasahe Bridge, built over Lhasa River, this road bridge is 929 m long.
 * 4) Shigatse Bridge, this 2750 m long bridge built over Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River to connect Lhasa with Shigatse by both road & Rail.
 * 5) Lhatse Bridge, this 2250 m long bridge built over Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River to connect Kailash-Mansarovar region with Lhasa by Road.
 * 6) Shannan Bridge, this 2000 m long bridge built over Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River to connect Lhasa with Nyingchi by road.
 * 7) Shangri Bridge, this 1500 m long bridge built over Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River to connect Lhasa with Nyingchi by road.
 * 8) 3 more Bridges over Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River is in Tibet (China) Autonomous Region, but details are unknown.

National Waterway 2 in India
National Waterway 2 (NW2) is 891 km long Sadiya-Dhubri stretch of Brahmaputra River in Assam.

Cultural depictions

 * Namami Brahmaputra Theme Song (in Hindi and Assamese) of Namami Brahmaputra festival.

title: Brahmaputra River