Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Puglia Italy - Matera
Italy • 8 days, 7 nights
Southern Italy: Castles, Caves & Coastal Treasures in Puglia
from
Turkmenistan Gates of Hell Darvaza crater
Turkmenistan • 10 days, 9 nights
Turkmenistan & the Gates of Hell
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Pinal Airpark
Note the chrysanthemum crests.
Hachiman Bridge
Clarendon War Memorial.
Clarendon War Memorial
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Peter Vazquez has been quietly making a name for himself for years.
The Appetite Repair Shop
Ōmori Nori Vending Machine
Parkway Bakery and Tavern has been slinging these sandwiches since 1929.
Parkway Bakery and Tavern
Parkside Plum Juice
Dishes at Aksorn are grounded in deep historical research.
Aksorn
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Haleakalā National Park’s summit region, shrouded in the pre-dawn fog.
Beware the Legends Behind These National Park Souvenirs
8 days ago
For Aguilar-Carrasco, nature is a powerful reminder of the interconnectedness of all life.
How Can National Parks Be Made Accessible to All? AO Wants to Know.
9 days ago
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
10 days ago
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
11 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Spratly Islands Spratly Islands

Spratly Islands

The most disputed archipelago in the world.

Spratly Islands

Added By
Stanislav Stanković
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Alison Reef, an atoll of Spratly Islands.   NASA/public domain
Alison Reef, an atoll of Spratly Islands.   NASA/public domain
Subi Reef, Spratly Islands.   United States Navy/public domain
Territorial monument of the Republic of Vietnam on Southwest Cay, Spratly Islands.   Phạm Xuân Nguyên/cc by-sa 3.0
Union Bank and Reefs in Spratly Islands.   NASA/public domain
Map of claims.   Central Intelligence Agency/public domain
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

If one were to combine all 750 atolls, reefs, rocks, and islets that constitute the Spratly Islands into one landmass, it would barely make up two square miles.

Scattered across over 150,000 square miles of ocean, these islands might seem insignificant. By a twist of geography and international politics, however, they have managed to be a matter of dispute between no less than six countries.

For various reasons, China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia (and to a lesser extent, Brunei) have all deemed these scattered islands important enough to lay claim to them. Some have gone as far as to establish a military presence on them, and even attempt colonization of them. All for a set widely flung sandy strips in the middle of the ocean. But why?

The Spratly Islands are situated roughly in the middle of the South China Sea, halfway between the Philippines and Vietnam. This geographical position placed them squarely on the ideological fault line during the Cold War. Today, they are little better off, as their position puts them uncomfortably close to some of the world's busiest waterways, including trade routes connecting East Asia with India, the Middle East and Europe, and through which China, Japan, and Korea get 80 percent of their much-needed oil supply. What's more, according to preliminary surveys, the Spratlys themselves lie above vast reserves of oil and natural gas.

Both the Chinese and Taiwanese governments (PRC and ROC) as well as Vietnam base their claim on historical records, dubious medieval charts, and the sporadic presence of fishermen. The Filipino claim is based on much more recent history, the actions of Tomas Cloma. Cloma was a Filipino adventurer and fishing magnate who, in 1947, tried to claim some of the atolls for a personal micronation, the short-lived and perhaps somewhat redundantly named "Free Territory of Freedomland." Nevertheless, the islets were once historically controlled by the Kingdom of Champa (present-day Cambodia and Southern Vietnam); Buddhist scholars from China usually ask permission from the King of Champa in order to pass through the sea in which these islands are located.

Malaysia also claims a part of the archipelago because the islands lie on an extension of Malaysia's continental shelf. While tiny Brunei refrained from making any official claims, it established a fishing zone that overlaps with the southern section of the archipelago. At the moment, a permanent solution is not in sight. The PRC, ROC, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia all maintain military presences on the islands.

Itu Aba, at a tiny half-mile in length and 1,300 feet in width, is the largest of the islands, and currently occupied by Taiwan (ROC). Itu Aba is at least large enough to accommodate a proper if rather small airport. Meanwhile, the Filipino military was forced to artificially extend Pag-asa (Filipino word for "Hope") Island, the second largest island in the Spratly Islands Group, in order to even fit their runway.

In order to boost its claim to Pag-asa the Filipino government has tried to establish a natural community, thereby giving away free land, accommodations, secure jobs, and a supply of food to any civilian willing to come and live on the island. At the moment the community consists of less than 200 people. It is currently administered as a part of the municipality of Kalayaan, and even has its own mayor, who nonetheless has his office in Puerto Princesa on Palawan, the nearest settled Filipino island.

Many different approaches have been taken to placing claim on the various islands. Malaysia has taken a soft, economic approach by making its island Layang Layang home to a tourist diving resort, complete with a connection with the mainland.

The People's Republic of China, on the other hand, has taken a somewhat less subtle tact. Gaven Reefs, once merely a 6.4-foot-high sand dune in the middle of the ocean, now supports a huge cement block with a raised metal frame, and a two-story building on top of that. At the very top of the bizarre structure, is the Chinese flag.

Related Tags

Micro Nations Territorial Dispute Islands Politics Geographic Oddities

Know Before You Go

By plane: Layang Layang (Swallow Reef), controlled by Malaysia, is the only island in the Spratlys with regular flights. A popular dive resort, it can be accessed via Kota Kinabalu. By boat: Pagasa (Philippines) and Itu Aba (Taiwan) are accessible on irregular cargo services from their respective mainlands.

Community Contributors

Added By

stanestane

Edited By

Paul Christian, Meg

  • Paul Christian
  • Meg

Published

August 17, 2009

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://wikitravel.org/en/Spratly_Islands
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spratly_Islands
  • http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-paradise-prison26-2009jul26,0,7243566.story?page=2&track=rss
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagasa_island
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itu_Aba_Island
Spratly Islands
Spratly Islands
8.633333, 111.916667

Related Stories and Lists

10 Unusual Border Feuds Around the World

List

By Meg Neal

10 Places Caught Up in Odd Border Disputes

geographic markers

By Meg Neal

Curious Fact of the Week: The World's Most Disputed Archipelago

islands

By Allison Meier

Related Places

  • Aerial photo of Baffins Pond

    Portsmouth, England

    The Micronations of Baffins Pond

    Three tiny islands in a Portsmouth pond are at the center of disputed land claims from a number of competing micronations.

  • Verdisian Flag Waving

    Kopačevo, Croatia

    Verdis

    A small self-proclaimed micro-state located on a piece of disputed territory between Croatia and Serbia, near Liberland.

  • The We Are Our Mountains monument.

    Stepanakert, Azerbaijan

    We Are Our Mountains

    This striking icon of the disputed Republic of Artsakh caused a stir at a Eurovision Song Contest.

  • New Hampshire historical marker for the Republic of Indian Stream

    Pittsburg, New Hampshire

    Republic of Indian Stream

    An unrecognized nation-state created in the 1820s to avoid taxes.

  • Liberland flag.

    Croatia

    Liberland

    A self-proclaimed libertarian micro-state on a tiny bit of disputed territory between Serbia and Croatia.

  • The Kuril Islands

    Kuril Islands, Russia

    The Kuril Islands

    Thanks to this small string of islands World War II still hasn't officially ended between Russia and Japan.

  • Nahwa.

    Nahwa, United Arab Emirates

    Nahwa

    A small United Arab Emirates territory within an Omani enclave within the United Arab Emirates.

  • Angola

    Ilha dos Tigres

    In 1962, the ocean severed this peninsula—and the village that sat on it—from the Angolan mainland.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.