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There are minerals, natural gas, and oilOil is a generic term for fluids that are not miscible with water. The name comes from Latin oleum for olive oil. Oil is frequently used to refer to petroleum an "oil shortage" generally means an inadequate supply of petroleum rather than cooking oil. deposits on the islands and their nearby seafloor. Because of the economic, militaryMilitary (from latin militarius miles "soldier") as an adjective describes anything related to soldiers and warfare. Used as a noun, it is equivalent to Armed force. See also Armed force Martial art Militaria Military history Military rule Military by cou, and transportationFor the movement of people or objects, see transport. For the shipping of convicted criminals to penal colonies, see penal transportation.al importance, the control, especially of the Spratlys, has been in dispute by ChinaThis article is on the geographic and cultural entity. For other meanings, see China (disambiguation). China ( Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , Hanyu Pinyin: Zhongguo, Wade-Giles: Chung-kuo) is a country in continental East Asia with some oute and several Southeast AsiaSoutheast Asia is a subregion of Asia. It includes all of the following territories: Brunei Cambodia East Timor Indonesia Laos Malaysia Myanmar (Burma) Philippines Singapore Thailand Vietnam Southeast Asia has an area of 1. 6 million sq miles (4,000,000 kn countries, especially VietnamThe Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a country in Southeast Asia. It borders China, Laos, Cambodia, and the Gulf of Tonkin. Cng Hoa Xa Hi Ch Nghia Vit Nam ( In Detail) (Full size) National motto: Dc lp, t do, hnh phuc (Independence, Liberty, Happiness Off, in the mid- 20th century19th century 20th century 21st century more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901- 2000 in the sense of the Gre onwards. True occupation and control are shared between the claimants. (See #Claims and control )
The countries with the most extensive participation and well documented history on the Islands are ChinaThis article is on the geographic and cultural entity. For other meanings, see China (disambiguation). China ( Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , Hanyu Pinyin: Zhongguo, Wade-Giles: Chung-kuo) is a country in continental East Asia with some oute and Vietnam.
The South China Sea Islands were collectively named the Tough Heads of the Surging Sea (漲海崎頭 Zhànghǎi Qítóu) and Coral Cays (珊瑚洲 Shanhu Zhou) since their discovery by the Chinese in the Qin Dynasty. But seafaring did not occur until the next dynasty, the Han. After the Song Dynasty, the Islands had been called The Thousand-Mile Long Sands (千里長沙) and Myriad-Mile Stony Embankment (萬里石塘).
There are houses dated back to the Tang or Song Dynasty on Ganquan Island (甘泉島), which nowadays is under disputed with the Vietnamese. In 1045, during the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song China, imperial (王師) troops were sent to the Paracel Islands. The fishermen of Hainan composed various "Notes on Changing Paths" (更路簿) that recorded over 200 routes, and the names of over 100 islands commonly used by the fishermen.
Even though some of the voyages of Zheng He passed by the Islands, they probably did not dock on them. There is an atoll in the Spratly Islands named after Zheng He though.
Vietnamese fishermen and merchants also have been exploring the South Sea Islands, with a less well-known presence, due to the historically unofficial capacity and shorter records.
In the 19th century, as a part of Occupation of Indochina, France claimed control of the Spratlys until the 1930s, exchanging a few with the British. During World War II, the Islands were annexed by Japan.