State PCS
The second-largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area is:
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)View answer ▾Hide ▴
Answer: Option A — Lake Victoria
Detailed Solution
Lake Victoria, in East Africa, is the second-largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area, after Lake Superior in North America.
About Lake Victoria:
- It covers an area of about 68,800 square kilometres.
- It is the largest lake in Africa and the largest tropical lake in the world.
- It is shared by three countries: Tanzania (about 49 per cent), Uganda (about 45 per cent) and Kenya (about 6 per cent).
- It is relatively shallow, with a maximum depth of about 84 metres.
- It was named after Queen Victoria by the British explorer John Hanning Speke, who reached it in 1858 and identified it as the source of the Nile.
- Its local names include "Nalubaale" (in Luganda) and "Nyanza".
- It is the main source of the White Nile, which leaves the lake at Jinja, Uganda.
- It supports one of the largest inland fisheries in the world.
- The introduction of the Nile perch in the 1950s caused the extinction of many native cichlid fish species.
- It is threatened by water hyacinth, pollution and overfishing.
Largest freshwater lakes by surface area:
- Lake Superior (USA-Canada): about 82,100 sq km; the largest of the Great Lakes.
- Lake Victoria (Africa).
- Lake Huron (USA-Canada).
- Lake Michigan (USA): the largest lake entirely within one country.
- Lake Tanganyika (Africa): the longest freshwater lake and the second-deepest.
Other record lakes:
- Caspian Sea: the largest lake in the world (salt water); bordered by Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Azerbaijan.
- Lake Baikal (Russia): the deepest (about 1,642 m) and oldest lake in the world, and the largest by volume of fresh water (about 20 per cent of the world's unfrozen fresh surface water); a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Lake Titicaca (Peru-Bolivia): the highest navigable lake.
Lakes in India:
- Wular Lake (Jammu and Kashmir): the largest freshwater lake in India.
- Chilika Lake (Odisha): the largest brackish water lagoon in India.
- Loktak Lake (Manipur): known for its floating "phumdis".
Why not the other options?
- ✗Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake by surface area.
- ✗Lake Baikal is the deepest and largest by volume.
- ✗Lake Tanganyika is the longest freshwater lake.
Quick tip
Remember: second-largest freshwater lake by area = Lake Victoria (Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya; source of the White Nile; named by Speke 1858); largest = Lake Superior; deepest = Baikal; India's largest freshwater lake = Wular.
💬 Discussions on this question
Ask a doubt ›Still stuck on this question? Ask our faculty and fellow students — answers appear here.
Ask a doubtMore World Geography Questions
View all ›- Q1.Lake Baikal, the deepest lake in the world, is located in:
- Q2.The world's largest coral reef system, the Great Barrier Reef, is found off the coast of:
- Q3.Which is the highest navigable lake in the world?
- Q4.Which is the longest river in the world?
- Q5.Which is the world's largest inland water body (lake)?
More General Knowledge Questions
- Q1.The techniques of Rasa and Bhava used in Indian classical dance trace their origin to which ancient text?Indian Dance Forms
- Q2.Lavani, Powada, Koli, Waghya Murali and Dhangari Gaja are folk dances of which state?Indian Dance Forms
- Q3.The one-act play associated with the Sattriya tradition of Assam is called:Indian Dance Forms
- Q4.Which dance form of Goa is known as the 'Warrior Dance'?Indian Dance Forms
- Q5.Manipuri dance is based on the Rasleela themes of:Indian Dance Forms
World Geography — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of World Geography, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the physical and political geography of the world: continents, major countries, mountain ranges, plateaus, rivers, deserts, grasslands, and the world's important cities, ports and resources. Exams test the longest rivers (the Nile and the Amazon), the highest peaks and the ranges they belong to, the largest deserts, and the local names of grasslands, such as the Prairies, Pampas, Steppes and Veld. Questions on cities located on rivers, such as Baghdad on the Tigris or London on the Thames, are also common. Practise the world geography questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.