Xuande Qundao
| Xuande Qundao | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Waters | South China Sea | |
| Geographical location | 16 ° 50 ′ N , 112 ° 20 ′ E | |
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| Number of islands | 14th | |
| Total land area | > 5.176 km² | |
The Xuande Qundao ( Chinese 宣德群島 / 宣德群岛 , Pinyin xuande Qúndǎo - "Xuande Islands" . Vietnamese: Nhom An Vinh ), English also Amphitrite Group are an archipelago of coral atolls which together with the Yongle Qundao the Xisha Islands forms . It is located around 330 km southeast of the Chinese island of Hainan and 400 km east of Vietnam in the South China Sea . The islands are controlled by the People's Republic of China and are part of the prefecture-level city of Sansha in Hainan Province. The archipelago is named after the Xuande emperor of the Ming dynasty , who in 1430 sent Admiral Zheng He with his fleet on his seventh and final sea voyage. The English name Amphitrite Group usually only refers to the Xuande Atoll and does not include the other formations.
The Republic of China on Taiwan and Vietnam also claim the island group.
geography
Map with all coordinates: OSM | WikiMap
The archipelago is made up of two atolls, the reef of a sunken atoll and an isolated sandbar.
Xuande Atoll
The Xuande Atoll (宣德 环礁) does not form a closed formation: there is a relatively large gap in the west. In the north are the "Seven Islets" (Qilian Yu 七 连 屿), which have now grown to eight, in the east on a ridge of reefs the main island of Yongxing Dao and the island of Shi Dao, which at 14 m is the highest elevation of the Xisha Islands at all. In the south, Yinli Tan, a sunken sandbar that is only sometimes visible at low tide, closes the atoll.
List of islands, sandbanks and reefs of the Xuande Atoll:
| Chinese name | Vietnamese name | English name | Coordinates | surface | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shi Dao (石岛) | Đảo Đá | Rocky Island | 16 ° 51 ' N , 112 ° 21' E | 0.08 km² | lies directly northeast of Yongxing Dao, rises 14 m above the water surface |
| Xi Shazhou (西沙 洲) | Cồn cát Tây | West sand | 16 ° 59 ' N , 112 ° 13' E | 0.2 km² | in the north-west |
| Yinli Tan (银 砾 滩) | Bãi Bình Sơn | Polecat bank | 16 ° 46 ' N , 112 ° 13' E | no information | in the southwest |
| Yongxing Dao (永兴 岛) | Đảo Phú Lâm | Woody Island | 16 ° 50 ' N , 112 ° 20' E | 2.1 km² | Main island of the Xuande Qundao and the Xisha Islands as a whole |
| Zhaoshu Dao (赵 述 岛) | Đảo Cây | Tree Island | 16 ° 59 ' N , 112 ° 16' E | 0.22 km² | in the north, with the Qilian Yu |
| Qilian Yu (七 连 屿) | is missing | Qilian Yu Subgroup | 16 ° 57 ' N , 112 ° 19' E | 0.836 km² | the "Seven Islets", subgroup in the northeast of the archipelago |
| At Dao (北岛) | Đảo Bắc | North Island | 16 ° 58 ' N , 112 ° 19' E | 0.4 km² | |
| At Shazhou (北 沙洲) | Cồn cát Bắc | North sand | 16 ° 56 ' N , 112 ° 21' E | 0.02 km² | |
| Dongxin Shazhou (东 新 沙洲) | is missing | New East Sand | 16 ° 55 ' N , 112 ° 21' E | 4,000 m² | |
| Nan Dao (南岛) | Đảo Nam | South Iceland | 16 ° 57 ' N , 112 ° 20' E | 0.17 km² | |
| Nan Shazhou (南沙 洲) | Cồn cát Nam | South sand | 16 ° 56 ' N , 112 ° 21' E | 0.06 km² | |
| Xixin Shazhou (西 新 沙洲) | is missing | New West Sands | 16 ° 55 ' N , 112 ° 21' E | 2,000 m² | |
| Zhong Dao (中 岛) | Đảo Trung | Middle Island | 16 ° 57 ' N , 112 ° 19' E | 0.13 km² | |
| Zhong Shazhou (中 沙洲) | Cồn cát Trung | Middle sand | 16 ° 56 ' N , 112 ° 21' E | 0.05 km² | |
| together | > 3.436 km² |
Dongdao Atoll
The Dongdao Atoll (东 岛 环礁) is located in the east of the archipelago. Its coral reefs have developed unevenly. They tower high in the northeast and form the two islands of Dong Dao and Gaojian Shi. Dong Dao is the second largest of the Xisha Islands and a popular resting and breeding place for sea birds. Gaojian Shi is the only island in the South China Sea that was formed from the cooled lava of an undersea volcano. In the southwest the reefs have remained relatively shallow. Only three sandbanks (Beibian Lang, Zhanhan Tan and Binmei Tan) have formed on them, which as a rule do not rise above the surface of the water.
List of islands, sandbanks and reefs in Dongdao Atoll:
| Chinese name | Vietnamese name | English name | Coordinates | surface | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beibian Lang (北边 廊) | Bãi Thuỷ Tề | Neptuna bench | 16 ° 32 ' N , 112 ° 33' E | no information | in the East |
| Binmei Tan (滨 湄 滩) | Bai Chau Nhai | Bremen Bank | 16 ° 17 ' N , 112 ° 27' E | no information | in the East |
| Dong Dao (东 岛) | Đảo Linh Côn | Lincoln Island | 16 ° 40 ' N , 112 ° 44' E | 1.7 km² | in the east, second largest Xisha island |
| Gaojian Shi (高 尖石) | Hon Tháp | Pyramid rock | 16 ° 35 ' N , 112 ° 39' E | 0.04 km² | in the East |
| Zhanhan Tan (湛 涵 滩) | Bãi Quảng Nghĩa | Jehangire Bank | 16 ° 25 ' N , 112 ° 37' E | no information | in the East |
| together | > 1.74 km² |
Isolated formations
The Langhua Reef in the extreme southeast does not form an atoll and has no formations above the water surface. The PR China built a permanently manned lighthouse here, as the reef is located directly on an international shipping route. The Songtao Tan and Xidu Tan sandbanks are isolated in the extreme southwest and northeast of the archipelago.
Isolated reefs and sandbars:
| Chinese name | Vietnamese name | English name | Coordinates | surface | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Langhua Jiao (浪花 礁) | Đá Bông Bay | Bombay Reef | 16 ° 3 ' N , 112 ° 33' E | no elevation above the water surface | Reef of a sunken atoll in the extreme southeast of the Xisha Islands |
| Songtao Tan (嵩 焘 滩) | Bãi Ốc Tai Voi | Herald Bank | 15 ° 43 ' N , 112 ° 13' E | no information | Sandbank in the extreme southwest of the Xuande-Qundao, below the water surface |
| Xidu Tan (西 渡 滩) | Bãi Gò Nổi | Dido bench | 16 ° 49 ' N , 112 ° 54' E | no information | Sandbar in the extreme northeast |
Administrative structure
As part of the city of Sansha, the islands are divided into a community of residents and two villages. All three administrative units are directly subordinate to the city government of Sansha.
- Resident Community Yongxing (永兴社区) on Yongxing Dao , the seat of the city government;
- Qilianyu village (七 连 屿 村), on Zhaoshu Dao ;
- Yongxing Village (永兴 村), on Yongxing Dao .
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2011-06/China-Vietnam-Macht/komplettansicht Dangerous skirmishes in the South China Sea. - China is in an open territorial conflict with Vietnam. The sensitive dispute is about raw materials - and about supremacy in the region. (from June 15, 2011)