The Songhua River (Sōnghuā Jiāng) is one of China’s major rivers, flowing through Northeast China—primarily Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces—before joining the Amur River at the Russia-China border. Its name literally combines three characters: 松 (sōng, 'pine'), 花 (huā, 'flower'), and 江 (jiāng, 'river'). Though 'pine flower' may sound poetic, the name likely originates from a phonetic transliteration of the Manchu word 'Sunggari', later adapted into Chinese with semantically pleasant characters. It is not related to pine trees or flowers botanically.

The river is vital for agriculture, industry, and transportation in Northeast China, and its basin supports major cities like Harbin and Jilin. It also holds cultural significance—Harbin’s famous Ice and Snow Festival takes place along its frozen banks each winter. While often called the 'Songhua River' in English, it’s never shortened to just 'Songhua' or 'Huajiang' in formal contexts—it’s always used as the full proper noun 松花江.