What is the history of the South China Sea Islands?

The South China Sea Islands are four islands in the South China Sea, namely Dongsha, Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha, and Huangyan Island to the east of zhongsha islands. Before 1500 years ago, the South China Sea was called "rising sea", and the reefs and shoals of the South China Sea islands were called "magnets".

Dongsha islands's name was first seen in Overseas Records of the Qing Dynasty, and it was called "Nan 'ao Qi" and "Luo".

The name of Xisha Islands was first found in General Theory of Jason Wu, edited by Ceng Gongliang in the Northern Song Dynasty, which contained "Julian Waghann's going out of the fortress" to "Jiuru Luoguo". "Nine-milk snail state" is today's Xisha Islands. In the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhou Qufei answered the generation outside the ridge and called it "Changsha". Shi Bi Chuan, written by Shi Lian of Yuan Dynasty, called it "Seven Seas", and General Yuan once led his troops to patrol "Seven Seas, Wanli Stone Pond".

The name of zhongsha islands can be found in Zheng He's nautical chart, which was drawn at 1430, and it is called "Shixing Shitangyu".

Nansha Islands, the earliest recorded is the article "Zhanchengguo" in the Song Dynasty: "I crossed the sea in October, and there is a stone pond near the southeast, named Wan Li." Among them, "Shitang" refers to the Nansha Islands now.