Triton Island

English

Etymology

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Proper noun

Triton Island

1. An island of the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea administered under Sansha, Hainan, China (claimed by Taiwan (ROC) and Vietnam).
   • 1840, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the High Court of Admiralty‎^[1], volume III, pages 434-435:

     THIS was a case of salvage by the master, owners, and crew of the Blakely, against the proceeds of goods and stores saved out of the Martha, a wreck on Triton Island, in lat 15° 47' N., long, 111° 11' E.. […]
     The Martha, on a voyage from Liverpool to Canton, with a very valuable cargo, was wrecked in the China Sea, about 500 miles S.S.W. of Macao, on the reef of Triton Island, only a few feet above the level of the sea—surrounded perpendicularly by coral rocks, […]

   • 1843, James Horsburgh, “The Paracels, with the Banks and Dangers in the Northern part of the China Sea”, in The India Directory, or, Directions for Sailing to and from the East Indies, China, Australia, and the Interjacent Ports of Africa and South America: comp. Chiefly from Original Journals of the Honourable Company's Ships, and from Observations and Remarks, Resulting from the Experience of Twenty-one Years in the Navigation of those Seas‎^[2], volume II, London: Wm. H. Allen and Co., →OCLC, page 359:

     TRITON ISLAND, or BANK, in lat. 15° 46ʹ N., lon. 111° 11ʹ E., by chronometers, extends in a N.W. and S.E. direction about 3 or 4 miles, according to a plan of it sent to me by Captain Brown, of the Triton ; the north part is a sandy lump, about 20 feet high, sloping down in a low point to the S. Eastward, with high breakers projecting a great way in that direction ; another reef projects from its N.W. end, and, like the preceding dangers, there are no soundings near it.
     This is thought to be the southernmost and westernmost danger of the Paracels ; it bears from Pulo Canton, which is the nearest land of Cochin-China, E. by N., distant 122 miles.

   • 1902 November 25, “The Return of the 'Phra Nang.'”, in China Mail‎^[3], number 12,380, →OCLC, page 5, column 4:

     On the 16th inst., they arrived at the Paracels, where they found the Phra Nang in the same position as before—aground on a coral reef on Triton Island, the south-western unit of the group.

   • 2011 May 30, Greg Torode, “Disputed islands are prized catch”, in South China Morning Post‎^[4], →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on April 16, 2024‎^[5]:

     Ly Son fishermen confirm they get very close, sometimes working within 10 nautical miles of the islands and reefs inside what China claims as territorial waters.
     They seek shellfish and edible seaweeds in shallow water as well as fish such as tuna, mackerel and jacks further out, sometimes on trips that can take 35 days.
     Significantly, they confirm not only fishing near Triton Island - the nearest to Vietnam - but also Bombay reef and Lincoln Island further east and up to North Reef, a route that passes the Chinese naval base on Woody Island.

   • 2016 January 30, Jane Perlez, “U.S. Challenges China’s Claim of Islands With Maritime Operation”, in The New York Times‎^[6], →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on January 30, 2016, Asia Pacific‎^[7]:

     The United States vessel, the missile destroyer Curtis Wilbur, entered the waters off Triton Island in the Paracel Islands chain on Saturday without giving China notice in an exercise intended to challenge “excessive maritime claims” by China and two other countries, said Mark Wright, a Pentagon spokesman. Vietnam and Taiwan also claim Triton Island, though the Navy operation appeared to be aimed at China. […]
     Triton Island, known by the Chinese as Zhongjian Island, is close to the area in the South China Sea where the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, a major energy company, moved an oil rig in 2014, resulting in a standoff between vessels of Vietnam and China, and a sharp deterioration in relations between the countries.

   • 2017 July 3, Thomas Gibbons-Neff, Simon Denyer, “China accuses U.S. of ‘serious provocation’ as warship sails near disputed island”, in The Washington Post‎^[8], →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on July 03, 2017, World‎^[9]:

     The USS Stethem, an American guided-missile destroyer, sailed within 12 nautical miles of Triton Island, a small landmass in the Paracel Islands chain, on Sunday, a U.S. defense official said, marking the second such operation since President Trump took office. […]
     Triton Island is claimed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan. […]
     Many of these nations have laid claim to islands in the South China Sea, some of which are no more than tiny strips of sand and reef. The last time the U.S. Navy sailed near Triton Island was in January 2016, when the USS Curtis Wilbur came within 12 miles of its shores. The Pentagon did not notify any of the island’s claimants before that operation.

   • 2018 May 19, “China lands nuclear strike-capable bombers on disputed South China Sea island”, in Deutsche Welle‎^[10], archived from the original on May 20, 2018, News‎^[11]:

     In the Paracel Islands, a new helipad, wind turbines and large radar towers have been built. The radar towers on Triton Island could be used in China's disputes with Vietnam and with the US over freedom of navigation operations, which the US Navy has used to back its perceived right to free passage in international waters.

   • 2023 August 16, Jon Gambrell, “China appears to be building an airstrip on a disputed South China Sea island”, in AP News‎^[12], archived from the original on August 16, 2023, World News‎^[13]:

     China appears to be constructing an airstrip on a disputed South China Sea island that is also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan, according to satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press.
     The work on Triton island in the Paracel group mirrors construction on seven human-made islands in the Spratly group to the east which have been equipped with airstrips, docks and military systems, although it currently appears to be somewhat more modest in scale.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:Triton Island.

Synonyms

• Zhongjian Island

Translations

Translations

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 中建島 / 中建岛 (Zhōngjiàndǎo)

• Vietnamese: đảo Tri Tôn

Further reading

• Leon E. Seltzer, editor (1952), “Triton Island”, in The Columbia Lippincott Gazetteer of the World‎^[14], Morningside Heights, NY: Columbia University Press, →OCLC, page 1947, column 3
• Saul B. Cohen, editor (1998), “Triton Island”, in The Columbia Gazetteer of the World‎^[15], volume 3, New York: Columbia University Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 3219, column 2: “Mandarin Zhongjian Dao (JUNG-JIAN-DOU)”