Editing South China Sea (section)

==Etymology==
{{Infobox Chinese
| pic = 
| piccap = 
| showflag = p
| poj = lâm-hái
| hain = nâm-hái
| wuu = noe<sup>平</sup> he<sup>上</sup>
| j = naam<sup>4</sup> hoi<sup>2</sup>
| h = nam<sup>11</sup> hoi<sup>31</sup>
| bpmf = ㄋㄢˊ ㄏㄞˇ
| t = 
| s = 
| w = Nan<sup>2</sup> Hai<sup>3</sup>
| mi = {{IPAc-cmn|n|an|2|-|h|ai|3}}
| p = Nán Hǎi
| c = 南海
| l = South Sea
| t2 = 南中國海
| s2 = 南中国海
| p2 = Nán Zhōngguó Hǎi
| w2 = Nan<sup>2</sup> Chung<sup>1</sup>-kuo<sup>2</sup> Hai<sup>3</sup>
| mi2 = {{IPAc-cmn|n|an|2|-|zh|ong|1|g|uo|2|-|h|ai|3}}
| l2 = South China Sea
| j2 = naam<sup>4</sup> zung<sup>1</sup> gwok<sup>3</sup> hoi<sup>2</sup>
| h2 = nam<sup>11</sup> dung<sup>24</sup> gued<sup>2</sup> hoi<sup>31</sup>
| wuu2 = noe<sup>平</sup> tson<sup>平</sup> koh<sup>入</sup> he<sup>上</sup>
| bpmf2 = ㄋㄢˊ ㄓㄨㄥ ㄍㄨㄛˊ ㄏㄞˇ
| poj2 = lâm tiong-kok hái
| hain2 = nâm tieng-kuōk hái
| tgl = Dagat Timog Tsina <br /><small>(Mar de China Meridional)</small><br />Dagat Luzón<br /><small>(Mar de Luzón)</small><br />Mar Occidental de Filipinas<br /><small>(Mar de Filipinas Occidental;Pilipinos uso oficial del gobierno; ZEE reclamada por Filipinas solamente)</small><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://es.hispanopedia.com/wiki/Mar_de_Filipinas_Occidental|title=Comentario Pinoy sobre pretensión CHina en su mar Territorial Tagalo|first=BBC|last=Filipinas|website=La Nuestra Ñpedic@}}</ref>
| por = Mar da China Meridional<br /><small>(South China Sea)</small>
| msa = {{lang|ms|Laut Cina Selatan}} ({{lang|ms-arab|{{Script|Arab|لا{{Jawi-HamzaThreeQuarter}}وت چينا سلاتن}}}}) <br /><small>(South China Sea)</small><br />{{lang|ms|Laut Nusantara}} ({{lang|ms-arab|{{Script|Arab|لا{{Jawi-HamzaThreeQuarter}}وت نوسنتارا}}}})<br /><small>(Nusantara Sea)</small><br />{{lang|ms|Laut Campa}} ({{lang|ms|{{Script|Arab|لا{{Jawi-HamzaThreeQuarter}}وت چمڤا}}}})<br /><small>(Champa Sea)</small><br />{{lang|ms|Laut Borneo Utara}} ({{lang|ms|{{Script|Arab|لا{{Jawi-HamzaThreeQuarter}}وت بورنيو اوتارا}}}})<br /><small>(North Borneo Sea)</small>
| vie = Biển Đông
| lqn = East Sea
| kanji = 南支那海 {{lang|en|or|italic=no}} 南シナ海 <small>{{lang|en|(literally "South [[Shina (word)|Shina]] Sea")|italic=no}}</small>
| kana = みなみシナかい
| romaji = Minami Shina Kai
| khm = សមុទ្រចិនខាងត្បូង<br />{{IPA|km|samut cən kʰaːŋ tʰɓoːŋ|}}<br />{{small|('South China Sea')}}
| ind = Laut Cina Selatan / <br />Laut [[Names of China#Zhongguo|Tiongkok]] Selatan<br /><small>(South China Sea)</small><br />Laut Natuna Utara<br /><small>(North Natuna Sea; [[Indonesia|Indonesian]] official government use; Claimed Indonesian EEZ only)</small><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.detik.com/bbc-world/d-3561255/china-komentari-penamaan-laut-natuna-utara-oleh-indonesia|title=China Komentari Penamaan Laut Natuna Utara oleh Indonesia|first=B. B. C.|last=Indonesia|website=detiknews}}</ref>
| tha = ทะเลจีนใต้ <br />{{IPA|th|tʰā.lēː t͡ɕīːn tâ(ː)j|}}<br /><small>(South China Sea)</small>
| rtgs = Thale Chin Tai
| order = st
| ci = 
| altname = 
| hn = 𣷷東
| tet = Tasi Sul Xina
}}

''South China Sea'' is the dominant term used in English for the sea, and the name in most European languages is equivalent. This name is a result of early European interest in the sea as a route from Europe and South Asia to the trading opportunities of China. In the 16th century, Portuguese sailors called it the China Sea ({{lang|pt|Mare da China}}); later needs to differentiate it from nearby bodies of water led to calling it South China Sea.<ref>{{cite book |last=Tønnesson |first=Stein |date=2005 |chapter=Locating the South China Sea |editor-last1=Kratoska |editor-first1=Paul H. |editor-last2=Raben |editor-first2=Remco |editor-last3=Nordholt |editor-first3=Henk Schulte |title=Locating Southeast Asia: Geographies of Knowledge and Politics of Space |publisher=Singapore University Press |page=204 |isbn=9971-69-288-0 |quote=The European name 'South China Sea' ... is a relic of the time when European seafarers and mapmakers saw this sea mainly as an access route to China ... European ships came, in the early 16th century, from Hindustan (India) ... The Portuguese captains saw the sea as the approach to this land of China and called it ''Mare da China''. Then, presumably, when they later needed to distinguish between several China seas, they differentiated between the 'South China Sea', ...}}</ref> The [[International Hydrographic Organization]] refers to the sea as "South China Sea (Nan Hai)".<ref name="IHO">{{cite web |url=https://iho.int/uploads/user/pubs/standards/s-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf |title=Limits of Oceans and Seas, 3rd edition |year=1953 |publisher=[[International Hydrographic Organization]] |access-date=28 December 2020 |at=§&nbsp;49 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008191433/http://www.iho.int/iho_pubs/standard/S-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf |archive-date=8 October 2011}}</ref>

The ''[[Yizhoushu]]'', which was a chronicle of the [[Western Zhou]] dynasty (1046–771 BCE), gives the first Chinese name for South China Sea as ''Nanfang Hai'' ({{zh|c=南方海|p=Nánfāng Hǎi|l=Southern Sea|links=no}}), claiming that barbarians from that sea gave tributes of [[hawksbill sea turtle]]s to the Zhou rulers.<ref name="Shen">{{cite journal|title=China's Sovereignty over the South China Sea Islands: A Historical Perspective|first=Jianming|last=Shen|journal=Chinese Journal of International Law|year=2002|volume=1|issue=1|pages=94–157|doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.cjilaw.a000432|doi-access=free}}</ref> The ''[[Classic of Poetry]]'', ''[[Zuo Zhuan]]'', and ''[[Guoyu (book)|Guoyu]]'' classics of the [[Spring and Autumn period]] (771–476 BCE) also referred to the sea, but by the name ''Nan Hai'' ({{zh|c=南海|p=Nán Hǎi|l=South Sea|links=no}}) in reference to the [[Chu (state)|State of Chu's]] expeditions there.<ref name="Shen"/> Nan Hai, the South Sea, was one of the [[Four Seas]] of Chinese literature. There are three other seas, one for each of the four cardinal directions.<ref>{{cite book|first=Chun-shu|last=Chang|title=The Rise of the Chinese Empire: Nation, State, and Imperialism in Early China, ca. 1600 B.C. &ndash; A.D. 8|url=https://archive.org/details/risechineseempir08chan|url-access=limited|year=2007|publisher=University of Michigan Press|isbn=978-0-472-11533-4|pages=[https://archive.org/details/risechineseempir08chan/page/n302 263]–264}}</ref> During the [[Han dynasty#Eastern Han|Eastern Han dynasty]] (23–220 CE), China's rulers called the sea ''Zhang Hai'' ({{zh|c=漲海|p=Zhǎng Hǎi|l=distended sea}}).<ref name="Shen"/> ''Fei Hai'' ({{zh|c=沸海|p=Fèi Hǎi|l=boiling sea}}) became popular during the [[Northern and Southern dynasties|Southern and Northern dynasties]]. Usage of the current Chinese name, ''Nan Hai'' (South Sea), gradually became widespread during the [[Qing dynasty]].<ref>華林甫 (Hua Linfu), 2006. 插圖本中國地名史話 (An illustrated history of Chinese place names). 齊鲁書社 (Qilu Publishing), page 197. {{ISBN|7533315464}}</ref>

In Southeast Asia it was once called the '''Champa Sea''' or ''Sea of Cham'', after the maritime kingdom of [[Champa]] (nowadays [[Central Vietnam]]), which flourished there before the 16th century.<ref name="NG-The Cham">{{cite web |last=Bray |first=Adam |date=June 18, 2014 |title=The Cham: Descendants of Ancient Rulers of South China Sea Watch Maritime Dispute From Sidelines – The ancestors of Vietnam's Cham people built one of the great empires of Southeast Asia |url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/06/140616-south-china-sea-vietnam-china-cambodia-champa/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140620153051/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/06/140616-south-china-sea-vietnam-china-cambodia-champa/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 20, 2014 |work=[[National Geographic]]}}</ref> The majority of the sea came under Japanese naval control during World War II following the military acquisition of many surrounding South East Asian territories in 1941.{{cn|date=September 2024}} Japan calls the sea {{lang|ja-Latn|Minami [[Shina (word)|Shina]] Kai}} "South China Sea". This was written {{lang|ja|南支那海}} until 2004, when the Japanese Foreign Ministry and other departments switched the spelling to {{lang|ja|南シナ海}}, which has become the standard usage in Japan.{{cn|date=September 2024}} 

In China, it is called the ''South Sea'', ({{zh|s=南海|p=Nánhǎi|labels=no}}), and in [[Vietnam]] the ''East Sea'', {{lang|vi|Biển Đông}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://chinhphu.vn/portal/page?_pageid=439,1090459&_dad=portal&_schema=portal&pers_id=1091147&item_id=5147503&p_details=1 | title=VN and China pledge to maintain peace and stability in East Sea |publisher= Socialist Republic of Vietnam Government Web Portal}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/news/story.php?d=20010311025315 | title= FM Spokesperson on FIR control over East Sea | publisher= Embassy of Vietnam in USA|date= March 11, 2001 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url= http://gis.chinhphu.vn/ShowmapGov.asp?pLayer=vn_hcc |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061006230745/http://gis.chinhphu.vn/Applet.asp?pLayer=vn_hcc |archive-date=2006-10-06 | title=The Map of Vietnam |publisher= Socialist Republic of Vietnam Government Web Portal}}</ref> In [[Malaysia]], [[Indonesia]] and the [[Philippines]], it was long called the ''South China Sea'' ({{langx|tl|Dagat Timog Tsina}}, {{langx|ms|Laut China Selatan}}), with the part within Philippine territorial waters often called the "Luzon Sea", {{lang|tl|Dagat Luzon}}, by the Philippines.<ref>{{cite book|author1=John Zumerchik|author2=Steven Laurence Danver|author-link=Steven L. Danver|title=Seas and Waterways of the World: An Encyclopedia of History, Uses, and Issues|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IBKoUXrF5p0C|year=2010|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-85109-711-1|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=IBKoUXrF5p0C&pg=PR259 259]}}</ref>

However, following an escalation of the [[Spratly Islands dispute]] in 2011, various Philippine government agencies started using the name [[West Philippine Sea]]. A [[PAGASA|Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA)]] spokesperson said that the sea to the east of the Philippines will continue to be called the [[Philippine Sea]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20110613-283772.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112101354/http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20110613-283772.html|archive-date=January 12, 2012|title=South China Sea renamed in the Philippines|first=Tarra|last=Quismundo|date=2011-06-13|access-date=2011-06-14|newspaper=[[Philippine Daily Inquirer]]}}</ref> In September 2012, Philippine President [[Benigno Aquino III]] signed Administrative Order No. 29, mandating that all government agencies use the name ''West Philippine Sea'' to refer to the parts of South China Sea within the [[Exclusive economic zone of the Philippines|Philippines exclusive economic zone]], including the Luzon Sea as well as the waters around, within and adjacent to the [[Kalayaan Island Group]] and [[Bajo de Masinloc]], and tasked the [[National Mapping and Resource Information Authority]] to use the name in official maps.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2012/09/05/administrative-order-no-29-s-2012/|title=Administrative Order No. 29, s. 2012|date=September 5, 2012|work=Official Gazette|publisher=Government of the Philippines|access-date=May 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180518200249/http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2012/09/05/administrative-order-no-29-s-2012/|archive-date=May 18, 2018}}</ref><ref>[http://ph.news.yahoo.com/west-philippine-sea-limited-exclusive-economic-zone-120023464.html West Philippine Sea Limited To Exclusive Economic Zone] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210307100754/https://ph.news.yahoo.com/west-philippine-sea-limited-exclusive-economic-zone-120023464.html |date=2021-03-07 }}, September 14, 2012, ''International Business Times''</ref>

In July 2017, to assert its sovereignty, Indonesia renamed the northern reaches of [[exclusive economic zone of Indonesia|its exclusive economic zone]] in the South China Sea as the ''North Natuna Sea'', which is located north of the Indonesian [[Natuna Regency|Natuna Islands]], bordering southern [[Exclusive economic zone of Vietnam|Vietnam exclusive economic zone]], corresponding to southern end of South China Sea.<ref>{{cite web |author=Prashanth Parameswaran |date=17 July 2017 |title=Why Did Indonesia Just Rename Its Part of the South China Sea? |url=https://thediplomat.com/2017/07/why-did-indonesia-just-rename-its-part-of-the-south-china-sea/ |work=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]}}</ref> The [[Natuna Sea]] is located south of Natuna Island within Indonesian territorial waters.<ref>{{cite news | title = Asserting sovereignty, Indonesia renames part of South China Sea | author1= Tom Allard | author2= Bernadette Christina Munthe| work = Reuters | date = 14 July 2017 | url = https://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-politics-map-idUSKBN19Z0YQ}}</ref> Therefore, Indonesia has named two seas that are portions of South China Sea; the Natuna Sea located between Natuna Islands and the [[Lingga Regency|Lingga]] and [[Tambelan Archipelago]]s, and the North Natuna Sea located between the Natuna Islands and [[Cape Cà Mau]] on the southern tip of the [[Mekong Delta]] in Vietnam. There has been no agreement between China and Indonesia on what has been called the Natuna waters dispute, with China being ambiguous as to the southern limit of its area of interest.<ref>{{cite journal|journal =Indonesian Journal of International Law|volume =20|issue =4|pages=531–562|year =2023|title =Natuna Waters: Explaining a Flashpoint between Indonesia and China|first =Damos Dumoli|last =Agusman|doi =10.17304/ijil.vol20.4.1|doi-broken-date =1 November 2024|doi-access=free|url =https://scholarhub.ui.ac.id/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1710&context=ijil|issn =2356-5527}}{{rp|p=555}}</ref>