Pratas Islands

The Pratas Islands (or Dongsha Islands) are located in the middle of the South China Sea (see South China Sea Islands).

It has historically been uninhabited, and nations like China and Japan claimed it to be their overseas territory. After World War II, the islands and the sea area around it were mandated by United Nations. Today they are administered by the Republic of China, which calls it the Dongsha Islands (東沙群島) or "East Sand Islands", and assigns the place a postal code (817).

The three major entities in the area are:

• Pratas Island (東沙島)
• North Vereker Bank (北衛灘)
• South Vereker Bank (南衛灘)

There are also some seamounts nearby:

• Jianfeng Seamount (尖峰海山)
• Maojia Seamount (芼架海山)
• Beipo Seamount (北波海山)