On Geng Lu Jing Circulated Orally Among Hainan Fishermen

YAN Genqi

Abstract: In previous research, Geng Lu Bu (Manual of Sea Routes) of Hainan fishermen, was often confused and used interchangeably with Geng Lu Jing(Oral Accounts of Sea Routes). In fact, the two are closely related yet distinctively different. Geng Lu Jing was created and transmitted orally by Hainan fishermen in the Song and Yuan Dynasties (960-1368), when they conducted productive and operational activities on or around the Xisha Islands; whereas Geng Lu Bu appeared later in handwritten form in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Some geographical names in Geng Lu Jing have been passed down from generation to generation, with some of them being written into Geng Lu Bu, becoming a primary source of names for the latter.

Key Words: Hainan Fishermen; Oral; Geng Lu Jing

Nanhai Hangdao Geng Lu Jing (Oral Accounts of Sea Routes in the South China Sea), also referred to as “Geng Lu Jing” or “Geng Lu Zhuan”, has been passed down orally between generations of Hainan fishermen. Since Geng Lu Jing was transmitted orally and Geng Lu Bu appeared in handwritten form, the two have both similarities and distinctions in concepts and circulation.1CHEN Pei, ZHENG Xiangpeng, Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage in the South China Sea and Relevant Practice, Haikou: Hainan Publishing House, 2018, p. 19. (in Chinese)This research on Geng Lu Jing would not only corroborate the history of the first discovery and naming of the South China Sea (SCS) Islands by Hainan fishermen, but also enrich the culture associated with their naming of the islands, reefs and other marine features in the SCS. In addition, such research provides a reasonable and sound basis to conclude that the names recorded in Geng Lu Bu (Manual of Sea Routes)are from reliable source.

I. Historical Background of Geng Lu Jing and Its Similarities and Differences with Geng Lu Bu

Geng Lu Jing was often confused with Geng Lu Bu in research related to the sea routes in the South China Sea. Thus, the formation time of the former was utilized as the evidence to support an argument regarding the time when the latter was handwritten on paper. In fact, the two have both similarities and obvious distinctions.

A. Historical Background of Geng Lu Jing

Geng Lu Jing was created notably earlier than Geng Lu Bu, with the former being an important source of the content of the latter. For the convenience of the next voyage of themselves or their descendants, it is necessary for Hainan fishermen, after their first trip to the Xisha and Nansha Islands, to remember the routes, mileages, compass needle positions, and features of the islands and reefs on the way. Moreover, they also need to name the islands, reefs and other features they met on the voyage. After repeated verifications (a route generally needs five or six times of verification by fishermen, according to LU Jiabing, a fisherman from Caotang Village, Tanmen Town, Qionghai City), such data would be learnt by heart and conveyed to other fishermen or their own posterity. Up to the present, they have been verbally circulated. Some of the geographical names given by Hainan fishermen were recorded in documents and maps; some were written into Geng Lu Bu, but some failed to be handed down from past generations and were replaced by other names. Over four decades ago, Mr. GUO Zhenqian, an expert on geographical names in Hainan, noted: “According to the law of information transmission that oral circulation is followed by written records, the folk names used by fishermen appeared earlier than those in ‘Geng Lu Bu’ and other written records.”2GUO Zhenqian, Origin of Names of South China Sea Islands and History about China’s Defense of Its Territory, in Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed.,Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands,Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 456. (in Chinese)

Geng Lu Jing had been verbally transmitted among Hainan fishermen for a long time before Geng Lu Bu came into being.3YAN Genqi, On the Stages and Cultural Characteristics of Hainan Fishermen’s Geng Lu Bu,Social Sciences in Yunnan, Vol. 3, 2017, p. 109. (in Chinese)In ancient times, fishermen were at the bottom of society. Most of them did not have the opportunity to learn how to read and write. Therefore, it was a spontaneous and inevitable choice for fishermen to provide themselves and their descendants with nautical shortcut and navigation knowledge through the oral transmission of Geng Lu Jing. Though Geng Lu Bu was later completed by handwriting, most fishermen could only sail to the SCS Islands relying on the knowledge of the routes and geographical names they acquired through personal voyage, or their memory of the content of Geng Lu Jing, since only a few people, such as the captain and the Huobiao, possessed Geng Lu Bu.

There are different versions of the legend regarding the creation of Geng Lu Jing among Hainan fishermen. One version circulated among fishermen of Tanmen Town, Qionghai City states: “FU Zaide was the first local fisherman who went to fish in the waters surrounding the Nansha Islands. He sailed to Nansha in 1286.Since he had no descendants, knowledge of the routes he described was passed down by local fishermen from generation to generation.”4ZHOU Weimin and TANG Lingling, A Sacred Book about the South China Sea:Interpretation of Culture Associated with Hainan Fishermen’s Geng Lu Bu, Beijing: Kunlun Press, 2015, p. 114. (in Chinese)The authenticity of the version circulated among the Tanmen fishermen is not verifiable. Fishermen operating in the waters around the Nansha Islands do not, necessarily, have to own a copy of Geng Lu Bu; however, it is highly plausible for them to have their own version of Geng Lu Jing if they frequently go fishing there.

Another legend in this case is the one about “Hongzui Gong” ( 紅 嘴 公5For the sake of limited space, only homophone names in Chinese are indicated in parentheses.,literally “Duke of Red Mouth”) by WANG Anqing, a fisherman from Liangtian Village, Dongjiao Town, Wenchang City. The legend reads: “The names for the component features of the Xisha and Nansha Islands were given by ‘Hongzui Gong’, a god worshipped in the Ming Dynasty. ‘Hongzui Gong’ told the first generation of fishermen from Puqian Town how to sail to Xisha and Nansha,as well as names of the islands and reefs they pass. Afterwards came the names Gandou and Maozhu of the Xisha Islands, along with Huangshanma, Niaozizhi and Wubaier of the Nansha Islands.”6HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 418. (in Chinese)

The legend by MENG Quanzhou is identical with the one by WANG Anqing.However, the god in Mr. MENG’s version is called “Hongzui Gong (洪嘴躬 )”, a homophone of “Hongzui Gong (紅嘴公 )”, both indicating the same god. It is said that in Beishan Village, Linwu Township, Wenchang City, an old fisherman could perform sorcerer’s dance in a trance. The god is called Hongzui Gong. At that time,god was considered to be the supreme deity. The fisherman performing the dance was the representation of god; he was in charge of designing the sailing plan. All fishermen should follow his instructions, such as how many geng (how far) to go,what direction to take, where to berth the boat, how to call the islands, reefs and other features along the routes. These sea routes and names were later written into Geng Lu Bu, which were also handed down from the ancestors.7HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 404. (in Chinese)

The fourth legend dates back to the Ming Dynasty, which states: During the Ming Dynasty, fishermen from Haikou, Puqian, Qinglan and other ports went fishing around the Xisha and Nansha Islands every year. A man called“Old Helmsman” (or “Hongzui Dan”) from Beishan Village, Linwu Township,Wenchang City, was the first to record the names of islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands given by the elder generations of fishermen.8WU Shicun, The South China Sea Disputes: Origin and Development, Beijing: China Economic Publishing House, 2010, p. 19. (in Chinese)It also proves that fishermen from the said ports first got acquainted with the geographical names for the component features of the Xisha and Nansha Islands through verbal transmission,which were later passed down over generations through written records. The records could be the original version of Geng Lu Bu, or some other forms not yet known.

Geng Lu Bu, with records written on paper, appeared relatively later. As fishermen sailed to the Xisha and Nansha Islands with increased frequency, the number of routes found and verified, as well as the number of the islands and reefs named also increased. Eventually, the oral tradition and tenacious memory could no longer meet the fishermen’s needs of ever-increasing supplement, modification and correction of information. Thus, there was an urgent need to record it in written form, for the purpose of passing on the practical experience accumulated over a long time to future generations. Against this backdrop, Geng Lu Bu was produced.

B. Similarities and Differences Between Geng Lu Jing and Geng Lu Bu

Both Geng Lu Jing and Geng Lu Bu, regardless of their circulation form,are collections of the practical experience and navigation knowledge that Hainan fishermen have accumulated for generations from their productive and operational activities on or around the SCS Islands. With their records of unique varieties of compass routes in the SCS, both are valuable cultural heritage of Hainan fishermen.Geng Lu Jing was included in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of China (second batch), released by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China in June 2008.9On 14 June 2008, Nanhai Haidao Geng Lu Jing (Oral Accounts of Sea Routes in the South China Sea), submitted by Wenchang City, Hainan Province, was approved and announced as a project included in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of China (second batch) by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China.It features all items associated with the SCS that have been transmitted verbally by Hainan fishermen, such as sea lanes, compass routes, sea lines, geographical names, shipbuilding and ship-handling technologies and skills.In comparison, Geng Lu Bu is a navigation guide recorded or copied on paper with a brush or other writing tools by Hainan fishermen in Hainan dialect. For example,QI Jiande, an old fisherman from Hougang Village, Puqian Town, Wenchang City,who had never owned a copy of Geng Lu Bu, nevertheless was announced, in June 2010, as a representative inheritor of Hainan Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage Project Nanhai Hangdao Geng Lu Jing, by Hainan Provincial Department of Culture, Radio, Film, Television, Publication, and Sports.

The statement above shows that Geng Lu Jing is protected as an intangible cultural heritage; while Geng Lu Bu is a “tangible cultural heritage” or “cultural heritage in memory”, just like oracle bone scripts. During the age of sailboats,every captain or Huobiao (the title used by Hainan fishermen to call the person in charge of reading compass and Geng Lu Bu) carried with themselves a copy of Geng Lu Bu. Notably, since the 1970s, navigation technology has developed rapidly. Advanced technology and, particularly, the wide use of motorboats and nautical charts resulted in the rare use of Geng Lu Bu as navigation guide by Hainan fishermen, as well as the gradual decrease of versions of the manual. Between April and May 1974, when conducting a field survey on the Xisha Islands, archaeologists of the Guangdong Provincial Museum first discovered Shui Lu Bu (Book of Waterways) kept by SU Deliu, a fisherman from Caotang Village, Tanmen Town,Qionghai City, Hainan Province. The results of the survey were written into a book titled Xisha Wenwu (Cultural Relics of Xisha)10Guangdong Museum ed., Cultural Relics of Xisha - Survey of Cultural Relics in the Xisha Islands, One of the Insular Group of South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Cultural Relics Publishing House, 1974, p. 11. (in Chinese)and a survey report published in the journal of Wenwu (Cultural Relics).11Guangdong Museum, Briefing of Cultural Relics Survey in the Xisha Islands of Guangdong Province, Cultural Relics, Vol. 10, 1974. (in Chinese).Thanks to these publications, such manuals of sea routes came to light. Later, forty-two surviving versions of Geng Lu Bu were discovered by experts and scholars from Xiamen University, South China Normal University, Hainan University and other institutions. However, Geng Lu Bu,which was handwritten on paper, has not yet been included in the protection lists promulgated by all levels of government in China. The possible reasoning behind this is that most people have mistaken it for Geng Lu Jing, which has already been included in the national list of intangible cultural heritage.

Geng Lu Jing was created by Hainan fishermen, relying on their tenacious memory and rich experience accumulated in their frequent travelling between islands in the SCS. Before the appearance of Geng Lu Bu, geographical names and sea routes were primarily circulated and passed down through oral transmission.Some names and routes have survived into the present day. It was widely transmitted, not only among captains, ship-owners and Huobiao, but also among fishermen fishing and operating on or around the Xisha and Nansha Islands. Even those who had never travelled to these islands could acquire the knowledge of Geng Lu Jing through some means.

Notably, in addition to the Xisha and Nansha Islands, many fishermen also travelled to Southeast Asian countries in the absence of Geng Lu Bu. In such cases,fishermen simply relied on their memory of sea routes, locations of islands and reefs, sailing speed and mileage, as well as their abundant sailing experience to sail in the SCS. QI Jiande, an old fisherman, said:

During my decades of sailing and fishing, I have learnt quite a lot from words and deeds of the experienced seafarers and fishermen, and carefully summarized the experience of both my predecessors and myself. I am deeply cognizant of the fact that “Nanhai Geng Lu Jing”, a collection of extensive experience of seafarers accumulated through generations, is still of great reference significance for navigation today.12ZHOU Weimin and TANG Lingling, A Sacred Book about the South China Sea:Interpretation of Culture Associated with Hainan Fishermen’s Geng Lu Bu, Beijing: Kunlun Press, 2015, p. 244. (in Chinese)

The author, through investigation, found that many Hainan fishermen who had never been a captain or a Huobiao, in the absence of Geng Lu Bu, had sailed simply with the guidance of Geng Lu Jing for a long time. For example, CHEN Zeming,a fisherman from Qingge Village, Changcheng Town, Qionghai City, kept a copy of Geng Lu Bu, which was brought back from Singapore by his father in 1930.However, the copy had not been shown to him until his father’s death. During that period, Mr. CHEN sailed between Vietnam, Singapore and China for years, despite the absence of Geng Lu Bu.

Another example is FU Yongxing, who was an old fisherman born in 1886 in Hongmei Village, Longlou Town, Wenchang City. His family had made a living on fishing for generations. His father, FU Shixiang, and his uncle, FU Shifeng, had begun fishing in the waters surrounding the Xisha and Nansha Islands ever since the reign of Emperor Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty (1862-1874). FU Yongxing said:

I went to the Xisha and Nansha Islands every year when I was at the age of 22 to 40 (1908-1926). I went to the Nansha Islands every November and December to catch sea cucumbers and trochus snails, then shipped them to Singapore for sale around Qingming and Guyu the following year (around April). After that,I sailed back to Hainan along the coast of Vietnam…. I do not have a copy of Geng Lu Bu, but I remember the voyages to many places: the distance from the Nansha Islands to Singapore is 50～60 geng13The Chinese word “geng” may mean the unit of time a ship sails or the miles a ship travels at a given time. Views in academia are not consistent as to how many miles one “Geng”equals. Some argue that one night is divided into 10 geng, and one geng is approximately 50 or 30 km., from Muzhutou to Kunlun is 31～32 geng, from Kunlun to Luohantou is 18 geng, from Luohantou to Dafo (cape varella) is 6 geng, from Dafo to Wailuo is 12 geng, from Wailuo to Dazhou is 18 geng, and from Dazhou to Qinglan is 6 geng.14HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands,Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 411. (in Chinese)

Geng Lu Bu, as a navigation manual, is essential for the captain and the Huobiao. Being recorded on paper, it can be considered a handwritten version of Geng Lu Jing. It was drafted, in most cases, by fishermen (with a basic knowledge of literacy) based on their personal experience and the pertinent content orally circulated among fishermen. Generally, only the captain, the shipowner and the Huobiao could have the chance to possess one copy. Being valued as a family heirloom, Geng Lu Bu was rarely shown to anyone other than the head of the family, let alone any outsiders. When the manual keeper died, it would only be passed to his son or even burned in the funeral.

The core word of Geng Lu Bu is “geng”, which contains four elements: origindestination, route, voyage and compass needle position. It is highly likely to be an important invention of Hainan fishermen (currently under discussion). The entries and contents of the initial versions of Geng Lu Bu ought to be very concise. The earliest surviving records in Geng Lu Bu should be the sea routes to the Xisha Islands, considering the proximity of this island chain to the Hainan Island.

Some experts believe that:

Geng Lu Bu can trace back to as early as the days when Hainan fishermen first started engaging in fishery activities. Subsequently, accounts of sea routes gradually appeared and were circulated orally by generations of fishermen.These accounts were engraved in the memory of old fishermen. Later, those ancestral fishermen who could read and write recalled their memories of such information and compiled it into records of sea routes, geographical names,wind strength and waves. The records were enriched little by little over time,forming the first draft of Geng Lu Bu. After being revised, supplemented,verified and copied by generations of fishermen according to their personal navigation experience, the first draft of Geng Lu Bu was gradually improved and developed into different versions.15LIU Nanwei and ZHANG Zhengsheng, Interpretation of Hainan Geng Lu Bu, Journal of South China Sea Studies, Vol. 1, 2017, p. 22. (in Chinese)

Many items of Geng Lu Jing have been incorporated into Geng Lu Bu. The version of Geng Lu Bu collated by MAI Sui by taking dictation from MENG Quanzhou is an interesting example bearing characteristics of both oral tradition and written documents. MENG Quanzhou is a fisher from Qifeng Village, Puqian Town, Wenchang City. He has never been a captain, but his family has been fishing around the Xisha and Nansha Islands since his great-grandfather (1796-1820). Hehad a copy of Geng Lu Bu, which had already been taken away from him at the time of investigation. Thus, he dictated the items, which were written down by MAI Sui and compiled into a manual of Geng Lu Bu.16HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 404. (in Chinese)This copy of Geng Lu Bu dictated by MENG Quanzhou is actually a written summary of Geng Lu Jing circulated by word of mouth. It contains 87 sea routes and 68 names, including: (a) 13 routes starting from Qinglan Port in Wenchang to the waters around the Xisha Islands or between the component features of the insular group, and 12 geographical names along these routes; (b) 74 routes from Langhua Reef of the Xisha Islands to the Nansha Islands or between the component features of the Nansha Island Group,and 56 geographical names along these routes.17The inconsistency of statistics about the geographical names mentioned in Geng Lu Bu was primarily caused by the fact that a place may have different names in different versions of Geng Lu Bu.Such routes and names memorized and handed down orally by fishermen, actually, have little difference from those recorded in Geng Lu Bu.

Two significant changes could be identified in the process where the oral Geng Lu Jing developed itself into the written Geng Lu Bu. Firstly, the content of Geng Lu Jing is mostly about geographical names, while Geng Lu Bu contains more detailed description about the origin-destination, sea route, compass needle direction and voyage (which was indicated by “geng”). Secondly, Geng Lu Bu contains normative and consistent entries, which have not been seen in all the versions of Geng Lu Jing circulated verbally among Hainan fishermen. Such entries could be considered a unique way that Hainan fishermen adopted to state or record important matters.

Hainan fishermen are also cognizant of the differences between Geng Lu Jing and Geng Lu Bu. For example, two proverbs from Qinglan and Puqian fishermen go as follows: “Those who have acquainted with Geng Lu Jing could be a sailor on the sea”; “those who have mastered Geng Lu Bu could be a ‘Shifu’ (literally“master”, equivalent to Huobiao in Hainan dialect) on the sea”.18XU Jun ed., Geng Lu Bu of Hainan, Haikou: Hainan Press, 2016, p. 193. (in Chinese)The former means that as long as one has acquired the knowledge of Geng Lu Jing, he could sail a boat on the sea; while the latter implies that one must learn Geng Lu Bu to be a“Shifu” on board. The standards of these two requirements are notably different in that the latter is more demanding than the former.

II. Geographical Names in Geng Lu Jing

Much information in Geng Lu Jing passed on verbally between generations of Hainan fishermen, due to a lack of written records, has been lost or difficult to recover. However, relevant documents and maps show that some names mentioned in Geng Lu Jing were lost during oral transmission, some have been translated into English and some remain in use till today.

A. Names Borrowed from Traditional Geographical Names in Ancient China and Incorporated into Geng Lu Bu

Among the names of those islands and reefs lying in the SCS, the name“Shitang” is one of the oldest and the most recorded. Whether in the manual of Geng Lu Bu, or the oral accounts of Hainan fishermen, “Shitang” is one of the most frequently mentioned names. Hence, the name “Shitang” in Geng Lu Jing, which was orally circulated among fishermen, could be a traditional geographical name of ancient China. According to historical accounts, Shitang, used to refer to the Yongle Island Group, first appeared in Chu Xue Ji (The Primary Anthology)19XU Jian, Chu Xue Ji, Vol. 5. (in Chinese), a book written by XU Jian in the Tang Dynasty. Many similar records can also be found in the Song Dynasty’s literature. For example, in the section on Champa Kingdom of The Compilation of Song’s Regulations, a book from the Northern Song Dynasty(960-1127), one line reads, “People who intended to travel to Guangzhou drifted to Shitang by wind and failed to arrive in years.”20XU Song ed., The Compilation of Song’s Regulations, Vol. 197. (in Chinese)In the section of Kmir Kingdom of the same book, it reads, “It took a group of travelers bound for the Central China several days to arrive in Champa Kingdom and ten days to cross the sea.Shitang, also called Wanli Shitang (ten-thousand-li rocky reefs), was situated in the southeast, where the sea might be deep or shallow, with raging currents and many shoals. Seven or eight out of ten people on board might be drowned if their ship was wrecked on the way. There was no hill or shore at the end. After reaching the boundary of Jiaozhi, they still had to travel five days before arriving in Qinzhou Prefecture and Lianzhou Prefecture.”21XU Song ed., The Compilation of Song’s Regulations, Vol. 197. (in Chinese)Zhao Rukuo (1170-1231) in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) referred to the Nansha Islands as Changsha. He wrote:“One day when I had time to browse through the map of foreign nations, I found Shichuang and Changsha, where there are perilous rocks and reefs, and Jiaoyang and Zhuyu, which are the southern boundary of China.”22ZHAO Rukuo, Preface by Zhao Rukuo, Commentary on Chu-fan-chi, collated and annotated by YANG Bowen, Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 2000, p. 1. (in Chinese)Later names such as Qianli Shitang (one-thousand-li rocky reefs), Wanli Changsha (ten-thousand-li sand cays), Wanli Shitang (ten-thousand-li rocky reefs), or Qianli Changsha (onethousand-li sand cays), are all meant to reflect the vast expanse of the sea area in the region. The two names, Shitang and Changsha, continued to be used until the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368-1912). The controversy among experts over the present locations of the two names has never ended (however, this issue will not be explored in this paper for the sake of limited space). Indisputably, these documents are sufficient proof that the names mentioned above are traditional geographical names created and used by ancient Chinese.

Almost every edition of Geng Lu Bu mentioning the Xisha Islands contains an entry about Shitang, which always refers to the Yongle Island Group in Xisha.For example, the third entry of the manuscript Ding Luo Jing Zhen Wei (Compass Needle Position) by YU Yuqing reads as follows: “To travel from Sanzhi to Shitang, please sail in the direction of Genkun-Yinshen (southwest) for 3 geng.”23HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands,Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 391 (in Chinese). Punctuation in the quote was added by the author.

In all the documents collected, the Nansha Islands was rarely called “Wanli Changsha” by Hainan fishermen. Such a name has so far only been spotted in the second paragraph of Geng Lu Bu - Sea Routes of the Nanyang Islands, the manual held by SU Deliu. It reads, “To travel from Wailuo to Dafo, sail in the direction of Ziwu for 12 geng. To travel from Wailuo to Wanli Changsha, sail in the direction of Maoyou-Jiageng for 14 geng.”24HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 376. (in Chinese)

Given that Geng Lu Bu had not yet come into shape during the Song and Yuan Dynasties (960-1368), names such as Shitang and Wanli Changsha, could be traditional geographical names created and used by ancient Chinese, or be handed down orally through Geng Lu Jing. Afterwards, they were written into the manual of Geng Lu Bu.

Hainan fishermen called the Nansha Islands as “Beihai” (North Sea), which is also an ancient geographical name created and used by Chinese ancestors. In the words of Mr. HAN Zhenhua, “the reference to the Nansha Islands as Beihai can date back to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), since South China Sea was named as Beihai at that time.”25HAN Zhenhua, A Study on History and Geography of South China Sea Islands, Beijing:Social Sciences Academic Press, 1995, p. 128. (in Chinese)According to the section “Xiao Lvsong (Luzon)” in the book Hai Lu (Records of Seas) by XIE Qinggao in the Qing Dynasty, “People can get water by digging a well on the Xisha Islands. Due south to the Xisha Islands lies Shitang, where those who anchor boats here to take shelter from storms should act cautiously [original note: the upper part of Shitang refers to Nanhai(South Sea), while the lower part refers to Beihai (North Sea)].”26XIE Qinggao dictated, Commentary on Hai Lu (Records of Seas), collated and annotated by AN Jing, Beijing: Commercial Press, 2002, p. 195 (in Chinese). The book Hai Lu was completed in 1820 and printed in 1851. XIE Qinggao visited Hainan Island on a regular basis for more than a decade; therefore, his records are highly reliable.“Nanhai” here refers to today’s Xisha Islands and “Beihai” refers to today’s Nansha Islands. Such records demonstrate that the Nansha Islands had already been referred to as “Beihai”at least in the Qing Dynasty.

B. Names Missing in Geng Lu Bu

Some geographical names in Geng Lu Jing have gone extinct; some were replaced by new names when being recorded into Geng Lu Bu. However, these names still can be located, by relying on the memory and oral description of Hainan fishermen.

1. Luo Dao (Zhongjian Island)

Located at the southernmost tip of the Xisha Islands, Luo Dao is the starting point for Hainan fishermen to travel from the Xisha Islands to the Nansha Islands.The waters surrounding the island are rich in trochus snails, the major type of seafood caught by Hainan fishermen during the period from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China (1840-1949). Due to its famous resources of trochus,this island, after being first discovered by Hainan fishermen, was first called “Luo Dao (Trochus Island)”, pronounced as “Lo Dao” in the local dialect of Hainan.However, later navigation experience showed that the sea currents in the adjacent waters flew rapidly in a reverse direction, (i.e., the currents of the surrounding waters flew against the sailing direction of the boat), which left navigators unable to decide the direction with naked eyes and thus had to return to the starting point halfway, spending hours to do so. With years of sailing experience, veteran captains concluded that the boat hadn’t deviated from the planned route, and it was only the reverse flowing currents that blinded their eyes. Hence, fishermen named this island as “Banlu”, meaning “half way”, to remind themselves and later visitors not to assume that they had gone off the route and sail back, because it was halfway towards the destination.27WANG Xiaopeng, A Tentative Analysis of Geng Lu Bu by PENG Zhengkai, Qilu Journal,Vol. 6, 2015, pp. 47～48. (in Chinese)Thus, when later recorded in Geng Lu Bu, the name “Luo Dao” was replaced by “Banlu” or “Banlu Zhi”. Such geographical names like “Luo Dao” had a verbal form first, and later were changed into other names when written into Geng Lu Bu.

2. Guihan Xian (Guihan Reef)

“Guihan Xian”, a name which originated from Chinese ancient name “Guiku Tan” and has been passed on orally between generations of Hainan fishermen,does not appear in Geng Lu Bu. Reference to “Guiku Tan” could be found in Hai Cha Yu Lu (Accounts of Hainan Island), a book completed by GU Jie during the reign of the Emperor Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty (1522-1566). The area in the vicinity of Guihan Xian is scattered with reefs and shoals, with waves surging and roaring like howling ghosts. Due to this, the area is called “Guihan Xian”, meaning a submerged reef where ghosts wail. In the words of Mr. ZENG Zhaoxuan and his team, “there is a place known for the roar of the waves and the ghostly wail of the wind. When waves break over the submerged reefs, sounds like the wailing of ghosts and howling of wolves would be heard by ancient fishermen of Hainan, if their boats passed this area at midnight. That is why the Hainan fishermen called this reef ‘Guihan Xian’, meaning ‘the submerged reef where ghosts wail’.”28ZENG Zhaoxuan and ZENG Xianshan, Study on Geng Lu Bu by WANG Guochang,China’s Borderland History and Geography Studies, Vol. 1, 1996, p. 96. (in Chinese)The expression “Han Jiao” in Hainan local dialect, meaning crying, was borrowed from Southern Min, where “Ku Jiao” was called “Han Jiao”. Later Hainan fishermen used the word “Xian” to refer to those reefs submerged at high tide and partly above water at low tide. A combination of the two elements above gave rise to the name “Guihan Xian”, which took the place of the ancient Chinese name “Guiku Tan”.

3. Gouzhangtou (Quyuan Reef)

XU Shulin, a fishermen and former director of Revolutionary Committee,Tanmen Commune, recalled one day around 1927, while fishing, he saw a British vessel stray into and get trapped in Gouzhangtou of the Nansha Islands. After the crew asked the local fishermen for help and guidance, one of them replied: “the place you got trapped is called ‘Gouzhangtou’, which is scattered with reefs and shoals; the shipping lane there is so narrow that even a dog cannot turn around its head without bumping into reefs or rocks.”29HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 413. (in Chinese)For this reason, Gouzhangtou is also called “Gouzhuantou” (literally “a dog turning around its head”), implying the narrowness of the shipping lane there. The geographical name “Gouzhangtou” was not recorded in Geng Lu Bu.

4. Gunzhu Xian (Nanping Reef)

The name “Gunzhu Xian” is not currently in use, yet its substitute “Mogua Sha” or “Mogua Xian” was recorded in Geng Lu Bu. The name originated from a legend30XIA Daiyun, Studies on Editions of Geng Lu Bu Respectively by LU Yefa, WU Shumao and HUANG Jiali, Beijing: China Ocean Press, 2016, p. 28. (in Chinese): some Hainan fishermen were lucky enough to harvest plenty of sea food in the calm waters around a reef. However, when they sought to kill a pig to celebrate the occasion, the pig rolled into the sea due to the sudden wobble and shake of the boat caused by an unexpected strong wind. In the eyes of the fishermen, the sea seemed to have cheated them of the pig. Following this event,Hainan fishermen named this reef “Gunzhu Xian”, as in Hainan local dialect, “Gun”means “to gain something by tricks” and “Zhu” means “pig”. Additionally, this reef was also called “Mogua Sha”, since waters surrounding the reef abound in a type of sea cucumber, or “Mogua Shen” in Chinese.

5. Tiezhutou

Tiezhutou, probably a geographical name circulated verbally by Hainan fishermen, was not included in Geng Lu Bu either. According to Mr. ZENG Zhaoxuan and his team, a huge rock named “Danzhu Rock” stands on the southwestern tip of Baijiao Atoll. The rock is 4.6 meters above water at high tide,like a towering column. Hence, local fishermen call the rock “Tiezhutou” (meaning“an iron column”).31ZENG Zhaoxuan and ZENG Xianshan, Study on Geng Lu Bu by WANG Guochang,China’s Borderland History and Geography Studies, Vol. 1, 1996, p. 100. (in Chinese)“Many fishermen died on the Nansha Islands, including CHEN Hongbai, a fisherman from Shangpo Village of Dongjiao Commune. Having lived on the islands for 18 years, he died at Nailuo at the southwestern tip of Shuangzi Reefs in his fifties or sixties (in the 1930s or 1940s). He was older than me, and very tall. His remains were buried at Tiezhutou,” recalled MENG Quanzhou, a fisherman from Qifeng Village, Puqian Town of Wenchang City.

6. Shenshui Xian (the Area Near Today's Changtan Shoal and Mengzi Reef)

“Shenshui Xian”, the area presently called Changtan Shoal and Mengzi Reef of the Nansha Islands, has never appeared in Geng Lu Bu. According to FU Yongfu,a fisherman from Longlou Town of Wenchang City, when sailing from Huo’ai Reef to Hongcao Xianpai, one would see Shenshui Xian on the route; with a coral reef in the center, the area was surrounded by deep water. In his several voyages from Hongcao Zhi (Xiyue Island) to Hongcao Xianpai between 1948 and 1949, Mr. FU passed an area called “Shenshui Xian”, where today’s Changtan Shoal and Mengzi Reef are located. The area where Changtan Shoal was situated was marked as“Shapai” (shoal) in the map drawn by FU Hongguang.32Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 518. (in Chinese)

7. Feidao (Meijiu Reef)

“Feidao” is a homophone of “Beijia” in Hainan local dialect, which is a gadget used to pray to gods and seek divine advice in Hainan. “The reef has a shape like the gadget ‘Beijia’. The lagoon in the reef is deep, allowing boats to sail in and call at its arc-shaped southwestern edge. Waters at the edge are so deep that the mooring rope may float on the water surface when the boat is fastened to a rock. If northeast wind blows, boats should leave the area as soon as possible since they are likely to hit rocks or reefs at this situation.”33Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 517. (in Chinese)

8. Hei'an Yang

“The waters in the vicinity of the Kunlun Islands (Con Dao Islands) in southeastern Vietnam were called Hei’an Yang. Thunderstorms are frequent in this area. Chinese boats sailing back from Singapore would pass by the Kunlun Islands and then Zhouya, a shoal strewn with small stones like duck droppings. This area is risky for sailing boats and therefore should be kept off,”34HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands,Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 429. (in Chinese)MENG Quanzhou said.However, the name “Hei’an Yang” was not included in Geng Lu Bu.

9. Yashi/ Zhouya

On the sea routes to Southeast Asia, there is a shoal called “Yashi”, which is situated off the outer edge of the Kunlun Islands in the eastern waters of today’s Vietnam. “When sailing northwards from Singapore to China, we, after passing the Kunlun Islands, approached a place called ‘Lundao Wai Yashi’ near the coast of Saigon [referred to today as Ho Chi Minh City]. It is a long shoal stretching tens of li [1 li is equal to half a kilometer], one of the longest we have ever known.”35HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 415. (in Chinese)With respect to the geographical name “Lundao Wai Yashi”, “Lundao Wai” probably means “off the outer edge of Kunlun Islands”, and “Yashi” means duck droppings in Chinese. A combination of the two implies a long shoal stretching like duck droppings in the waters off the Kunlun Islands. According to MENG Quanzhou, “To travel from Singapore back to Hainan Island, boats will sail past the Kunlun Islands and Zhouya. Zhouya is a long shoal covered with piles of stones resembling duck droppings, which make it a risky navigational area. To travel northwards further,boats will arrive at Wailuo, a mountain island surrounded by rapid waters. Standing on Wailuo, one can see mountains stretching and undulating along the Vietnamese coast.”36HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 408. (in Chinese)Based on such description, both Yashi and Zhouya should refer to the same place. Nevertheless, neither of them is included in Geng Lu Bu.

In addition to those names missing in Geng Lu Bu, there are also some names from Geng Lu Jing which were altered a bit at the time of being recorded in the manual of Geng Bu Bu. For example, in oral communication, Hainan fishermen tend to refer to the eastern or northern part of an island, islet, reef or shoal, as“Shang” (upper part), and the western or southern part as “Xia” (lower part). Hence,the Xuande Island Group, lying on the east of the Xisha Islands, is called “Shang Zhi” (upper islands), and Yongle Island Group, located at the western part, is called“Xia Zhi” (lower islands). Likewise, Beizi Island is named “Nailuo Shangzhi”(Nailuo Upper Island), and Nanzi Island is named “Nailuo Xiazhi” (Naluo Lower Island). Contrarily, in Geng Lu Bu, both “Nailuo Shangzhi” and “Nailuo Xiazhi”are simplified as “Nailuo Zhi” with the words “Shang” “Xia” omitted. Another example is “Da Nailuo Zhi” (Big Nailuo Island) and “Xiao Nailuo Zhi” (Small Nailuo Island). These two names were called “Nailuo” collectively in Geng Lu Bu.KE Jiayu, born in 1906, is a fisherman from Caotang Village, Tanmen Town. He began to fish around the Nansha Islands at the age of 23 and lived on Xiao Nailuo Zhi for two years, before visiting there once a year. He found that “water on Xiao Nailuo Zhi tastes better while that on Da Nailuo Zhi is saltier”37HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 420. (in Chinese).

According to experts, 15 geographical names that were orally circulated among fishermen have not been recorded in Geng Lu Bu, including Yagong, Shiyu, Sanjiao Zhizai, Hongcaoer, Hongcaosan, Shizhi, Changzhi, Xianzhuo, Ailuo Shangzhi,Nanmen, Dongmen, Chang Xian, Guihan Xian, Ergu and Pigu.38ZHANG Zhengsheng and LIU Nanwei, Historical Significance of Investigation Reports on Fishery Production and Aquatic Resources Concerning the Xisha, Nansha and Zhongsha Islands, Journal of South China Sea Studies, Vol. 3, 2015, p. 63. (in Chinese)Around 1980,Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names conducted a survey and found 20 more geographical names circulated verbally by Hainan fishermen had not been included in Geng Lu Bu, such as Xiandan, Yinyu Zai, Dongnan Jiao, and Ximen.39ZHANG Zhengsheng and LIU Nanwei, Historical Significance of Investigation Reports on Fishery Production and Aquatic Resources Concerning the Xisha, Nansha and Zhongsha Islands, Journal of South China Sea Studies, Vol. 3, 2015, p. 63. (in Chinese)The possible sources of all these geographical names should be Geng Lu Jing circulated orally among Hainan fishermen.

III. Later Usage of the Geographical Names in Geng Lu Jing

After thousands of years of evolvement, some geographical names mentioned in Geng Lu Jing have been passed down orally to this generation and some have been used in nautical charts, while others have been written into Geng Lu Bu,becoming a primary source of names for the latter.

A. Some Names Have Been Passed Down till Today by Word of Mouth

According to statistics from experts, among the 287 standard geographical names of the SCS Islands published by China in 1983, there are “128 names habitually used by Hainan fishermen”40LIU Nanwei, Articles on Geographical Names of the South China Sea Islands, Beijing:Science Press, 1996, p. 119. (in Chinese). Of these 128 names, 114 are from Geng Lu Bu, including 34 folk names associated with the Xisha Islands and 80 pertinent to the Nansha Islands. “Among the 172 names relating to the Nansha Islands, 79 are habitually used by fishermen and widely circulated among Hainan fishermen.”41Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 52. (in Chinese)In line with the statistics prepared by Mr. GUO Zhenqian in his article “Explorer of the Nanhai Islands”, 124 standard names of islands and reefs in the SCS have their corresponding names that are habitually used by fishermen. The exact number of these corresponding names, as per the name list prepared by Mr. GUO, is 187.42XIA Daiyun, MOU Qi and HE Yuyang, Research on the Creation Time and Cultural Characteristics of Hainan Fishermen’s Geng Lu Bu, Journal of South-Central University for Nationalities, No. 5, 2016, pp. 54～59. (in Chinese)These 187 names came mainly from Geng Lu Bu kept by Hainan fishermen.Moreover, 48 standard names were sourced exactly from the names habitually used by local fishermen, including some homophonic names from local dialect. Another set of statistics shows that 138 standard names of the islands, reefs and other maritime features in the SCS, including 38 associated with Xisha and 100 with Nansha, derived their names from the ones habitually used by Hainan fishermen.These statistics, despite of their inconsistency, demonstrate that the “names habitually used by fishermen” should include those from Geng Lu Jing and those from Geng Lu Bu, and that some names transmitted orally by fishermen are still widely in use today.

The names mentioned in Geng Lu Jing have been found recorded as “folk names of Hainanese” or “l(fā)ocal names” in some documents completed in the Republican Era (1912-1949). One of the earliest documents of this kind is A Compilation of Materials Concerning the Xisha and Dongsha Islands Case, which was compiled by CHEN Tianxi in June 1928. According to the book, “[Guangdong]Provincial Government received a request for approval of land reclamation on Bazhu and Baxing, two islands of the Xisha Islands, from LI Deguang and some other residents of Qiongdong County43In May 1914, Huitong County was renamed as Qiongdong County. In December 1958,Qiongdong County, Lehui County and Wanning County were merged into Qionghai County.In November 1992, Qionghai County was renamed as Qionghai City.. As per the resolution made by the Provincial Affairs Council, this issue would be submitted to the Commerce Department for further review.” Another quote from the same book reads, “These people have moved from Yuan Island to Bazhu Island.” Bazhu, Baxing and Yuan are all island names given by Hainan fishermen. The book A Survey of the Xisha Islands, compiled by SHEN Hongfei the same year, recorded that “On 29 May,the team went to survey Lin Island and Shi Island. According to fishermen from Qiongdong and Qinglan Ports, the two islands were originally called ‘Ba Island’and ‘Xiaoba Island’, where ‘Ba’ means ‘Lin’ in Chinese.”44HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 206. (in Chinese)By that time, nine names given by Hainan fishermen to the islands or reefs in the Xisha Islands had been recorded, such as Bazhu (Yongxing Island), Baxing (Dong Island), Yuan Island (Ganquan Island), Ba Island, Xiaoba Island, Sijiang Island (Jinqing Island),Sanjiao Island (Chenhang Island) and Xiaosanjiao Island (Guangjin Island). The issue of Tao Sheng (Sound of Waves) published in February 1929 also contains a statement, saying that: “At 1 PM, [we] arrived at Lin Island (also called ‘Mao Island’ by the natives).”45LIU Nanwei, Articles on Geographical Names of the South China Sea Islands, Beijing:Science Press, 1996, p. 39. (in Chinese)However, the government of the Republic of China did not pay attention to the names that Hainan fishermen gave to the islands, reefs and other features in the SCS.

B. Some Names Were Plotted in Maps

One perfect example in this case is the map drawn by a Japanese man named Motosuke Ogakura in 1918. In that year, Ogakura met three Hainan fishermen on Beizi Island of the Nansha Islands. Due to his unfamiliarity with the area, he enquired about the geographical names, and then drafted a map according to the names provided by the fishermen. His map recorded the mileage from one island to another (the mileage here actually refers to the number of “geng” in the words of Hainan fishermen), as well as ten names for the component features of the Nansha Islands, including Shuang Zhi (today’s Shuangzi Reefs), Tie Zhi (today’s Zhongye Island), Hongcao Zhi (today’s Xiyue Island), Luo Kong (today’s Mahuan Island),Niaozai Zhi, Tongzhang Zhi (alternatively Guogai Zhi, today’s Yangxin Cay),Disan Zhi (today’s Nanyue Island), Huangshanma Zhi (today’s Taiping Island),Nanyi Zhi (today’s Nanwei Island), Di Zhi (alternatively Chenggou Zhi, today’s Jinghong Island).46Motosuke Ogakura, Islands of Storm, 1940. (in Japanese)The map is called “Map Drawn by Chinese Fishermen in 1918 on Shuang Zhi of the Nansha Islands”.47Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 82. (in Chinese)To be precise, it was a map drawn by Ogakura, taking the dictation of the three Hainan fishermen. A reasonable analysis of the aforementioned matter could tell that those three fishermen did not show the manual of Geng Lu Bu to Ogakura, but just informed him of the names they learnt by heart from Geng Lu Jing. The reason behind that is a Hainan fisherman would never show his family heirloom Geng Lu Bu to outsiders, let alone foreigners.However, this map represents the non-Chinese map which adopts the most geographical names stemming from those given by Hainan fishermen.

Another example is the “Map of the Xisha Islands” attached to the Proposal for the Development and Management of Farming and Fisheries on Bazhu Island and Baxing Island, which was submitted by LI Deguang and some other natives of Qiongdong County to the government of the Republic of China. The map came to light when the said proposal was incorporated into A Compilation of Materials Concerning the Xisha and Dongsha Islands Case and published in 1928. The map recorded 18 geographical names, including Shuangfan, Changdao, Bazhu,Baxing, Baxing Gu, Erquan Reef, Gandou, Yagong, Yin Island, Sijiang, Sanjiao,Sanquan Jiao, Laocu, Yuan Island, Wei Island, Daquan Reef, Baizhizai and Banlu;all these names were marked as “folk name” or “folk name of Hainanese”.48LIU Nanwei, Articles on Geographical Names of the South China Sea Islands, Beijing:Science Press, 1996, p. 39. (in Chinese)The map marked with these “folk names” of Hainan fishermen was presented to the government of the Republic of China. It contains the latitude and longitude of a place, legend, route, location and distance, with descriptive text attached. As recorded in the descriptive text of the said map: “Bazhu Island is located at the southern tip of Chang Island (folk name of Hainanese), 16°50’～16°52’ north latitude and 112°24’～112°27’ east longitude. It is 120 nautical miles from Tanmen Port. Shihua Reef, which is located near the outer edge of the island, is roughly 6 li in diameter.”49Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 83. (in Chinese)

The Map of the Xisha Islands as described above is quite similar to modern ones. Notably, “Langhua Reef”, which is the standard name for a reef in the SCS at present, was referred to as “Shihua Reef” in both the map and its descriptive text. “Shihua Reef” was probably derived from a folk place name orally circulated among Hainan fishermen. This name has not been recorded in Geng Lu Bu. As Mr.LIU Nanwei observed, “The names of the islands, reefs and other features in the SCS as mentioned in the books and periodicals published publicly in China before 1949, are also the ‘folk names of Hainanese’. Having been passed down orally from their ancestors, these names are almost identical to those recorded in Geng Lu Bu.”50LIU Nanwei, Articles on Geographical Names of the South China Sea Islands, Beijing:Science Press, 1996, p. 39. (in Chinese)

A third example in this case is the map drawn by FU Hongguang, a native of Changmei Village, Longlou Town, Wenchang City. Mr. FU used to live in Niaozi Zhi (Nanwei Island) of the Nansha Islands for years between 1930 and 1934,51HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 428. (in Chinese)gaining a good reputation for his expertise and experience in sailing. Based on his extensive knowledge of the location of the component parts of the Xisha and Nansha Islands, he drew a sketch map of the geographical location of the Xisha and Nansha Islands in 1935. The map is 107 cm long and 79 cm wide. 81 names,including 18 for the component features of the Xisha Islands and 63 for those of the Nansha Islands, were plotted on the map. The map is also attached “with a campus marked with gradations of twenty-four compass points”52HAN Zhenhua ed., Compilation of Historical Accounts on South China Sea Islands, Beijing: Oriental Publishing House, 1988, p. 399. (in Chinese). Due to the fact that Mr. FU did not possess a manual of Geng Lu Bu, his map was drawn based on Geng Lu Jing orally transmitted among fishermen and his own experience. This map is the one that contains the most names sourced from Geng Lu Jing during the Republican Era of China. Moreover, today’s Zengmu Reef was marked as “Shapai”on the map. This is the first time that Shapai appeared, which, however, has never been found in all surviving versions of Geng Lu Bu.53Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 87. (in Chinese)All these prove that “Shapai”(today’s Zengmu Reef) is the southernmost part of China’s Nansha Islands, which got its name from Hainan fishermen at the latest in the Republican Era.

As mentioned above, many geographical names from Geng Lu Jing were plotted on maps. Such names reveal that: (a) in the oral transmission of fishermen in the Republican Era, many places have already had several alternatives names (e.g.,Yongxing Island was also called Maozhu, Bazhu or Mao Island); and (b) Geng Lu Jing has developed into its maturity in the Republican Era, which, resembling Geng Lu Bu, also contains the four elements: origin-destination, compass needle position,sea route and number of geng (distance).

C. Some Names Were Incorporated into the Manual of Geng Lu Bu,Becoming the Primary Source of the Names of the Latter

Hainan dialects have been detected in some geographical names mentioned in Geng Lu Jing. A good example in this case is the Map of the Xisha Islands attached to the Proposal for the Development and Management of Farming and Fisheries on Bazhu Island and Baxing Island submitted by Mr. Li Deguang in 1935. The map contains 18 geographical names such as Shuangfan, Chang Island, Bazhu, Baxing,Baxinggu, Erquan Reef, Gandou, Yagong, Yin Island, Sijiang, Sanjiao, Sanquan Reef, Laocu, Yuan Island, Wei Island, Daquan Reef, Baizhizai and Banlu. Notably,some of these names were marked as “folk names” or “folk names of Hainanese” in the map. A review of these 18 names tells that Hainan dialect had already been used to name the islands and other features at that time, since “dao (island)” was called“zhi” and “jiao (reef)” was called “xian” in Hainan dialect. Some geographical names orally transmitted between fishermen, such as Bazhu, Baxing, Gandou,Sijiang, Sanjiao and Banlu, were later written into Geng Lu Bu; while some others were replaced by other names.

D. Some Names from Geng Lu Jing Were Adopted by Foreigners

According to experts, Yongxing Island in the Xisha Islands (known as “Paracel Islands” in Western countries) was called “Poxo” by Portuguese in the 16th century. The Portuguese word “Poxo”, meaning “submerged reef” or “rock”, was a transliteration of “Bazhu”, which is a name orally transmitted among Hainan fishermen.54LIN Jinzhi, The Xisha and Nansha Islands Have Been China’s Territory Since Ancient Times, in Guangdong Provincial Committee on Geographical Names ed., Compilation of Materials on the Geographical Names of South China Sea Islands, Guangzhou: Guangdong Map Publishing House, 1987, p. 515. (in Chinese)

In the Map of Asia made by the Portuguese Jacob Gstaaldi in 1561 (the 40th year of the reign of Emperor Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty), Yongxing Island was marked as “PULOO.MJO” (Maojiao Island). “PULOO.MJO” is, actually a transliteration of “Mao Zhi”, which is a name commonly used by Hainan fishermen.Among all the component features of the Xisha Islands, Yongxing Island is the one most convenient for anchoring, and maybe that is why it got the name of Mao Island. As “island” is customarily called “zhi” by Hainan fishermen, “Mao Island”is also known as “Mao Zhi”. However, as why the word “Mao” in “Mao Island”or “Mao Zhi” is written as “貓 ” (cat) instead of “錨 ”(anchor), that is possibly because the two Chinese words have identical pronunciations, and therefore got mixed up.55WANG Cai, A Restudy of the Folk Names of the South China Sea Islands Recorded in the Copies of Hainan Fishermen’s Geng Lu Bu, Journal of Qiongzhou College, Vol. 3, 2015,p.18. (in Chinese)

The 1868 Guide to South China Sea by British navy has accounts of “Sin Cowe” (Jinghong Island) and “Namyit” (Hongma Island). “Sin Cowe” is virtually a transliteration from “Chenggou” in Hainan dialect and “Namyit” is from“Nanyi”. This Guide contains the earliest surviving foreign record of the names given by Hainan fishermen to the islands and other features in the SCS. According to statistics from experts, seven or eight of the 43 English geographical names mentioned in the Guide, including 19 for the features of the Xisha Islands and 24 for those of the Nansha Islands, were transliterated from the folk place names used by Hainan fishermen.56CHEN Qiuyun, HUANG Bin and LI Ji, A Legal Interpretation of the South China Sea Geng Lu Bu Based on the Principle of Occupation, Pacific Journal, Vol. 7, 2015, p. 106. (in Chinese)As Mr. LIU Nanwei noted, “In the Western countries, at least 9 of the common names for the islands, reefs and other features in the SCS were transliterated from the folk names used locally in Hainan.”57LIU Nanwei, Articles on Geographical Names of the South China Sea Islands, Beijing:Science Press, 1996, p. 68. (in Chinese)

Many names mentioned in Geng Lu Jing had frequently been transliterated into foreign ones during the Ming Dynasty. This fact serves as a compelling piece of evidence that Chinese people were the first to discover, name, and develop the SCS Islands. Long before the ships of Western countries came to or passed these islands and reefs, the Chinese people had already lived and engaged in productive activities there. Therefore, foreigners arriving there simply enquired Chinese fishermen about the names of the relevant islands and reefs, and then recorded them on maps or in books, using names derived from Chinese pinyin or literal translation. For example, on 18 August 1933, two employees of Mainichi Shimbun(one of three biggest national daily newspapers in Japan) were sent to survey China’s Nansha Islands on a 47-ton sailing boat. Their log says, “We arrive at our destination - Beierzi Island on 25 [August] …. Two Chinese people from Hainan Island received us in a friendly manner. Together we went to the Nanerzi Island where three Chinese people are living.”58XIA Zhangying ed., History of Fishery in the South China Sea Islands, Beijing: China Ocean Press, 2011, p. 111. (in Chinese)Apparently, “Beierzi Island” and “Nanerzi Island” were names given by Hainan fishermen. In addition, considering that Geng Lu Bu was kept as a treasured private copy by Hainan fishermen for generations,they would not show it to foreigners when being asked. Rather, they would simply inform them of the relevant names through word of mouth. It is in this way that Geng Lu Jing contributed to world navigation.

IV. Conclusion

To sum up, Geng Lu Jing came into being in the Song and Yuan Dynasties,developing into its maturity during the Ming Dynasty. Geng Lu Jing, like Geng Lu Bu written on paper, possesses precious historical and cultural value for being legacy handed down to us from ancient Chinese fishermen. Both are compelling evidence that the Chinese people were the first to discover, name, develop, and manage the SCS Islands. The standard geographical names and folk place names of fishermen as published by Chinese competent authorities in 1983 included the names from both Geng Lu Jing and Geng Lu Bu. Particularly, approximately 20 geographical names sourced from Geng Lu Jing were announced as folk names having corresponding standard names, including Yagong (Yagong Island)59Geographical names in parentheses are standard geographical names published by the competent authorities of China. The same is applicable to other similar cases in the paper.,Shiyu (Shiyu Islet), Sanjiao Zhizai (Guangjin Island), Hongcaoer (Zhong Shoal),Hongcaosan (Bei Shoal), Shizhi (Zhongdao Island), Changzhi (Beidao Island),Xianzhuo (Zhanhan Reefs), Nanmen (Nanmen Reef), Dongmen (Dongmen Reef),Changxian (Changhan Shoal), Ergu (Erjiao Reef), Ailuo Shangzhi (Beizi Island),and Guihan Xian (Guihan Reef). To conclude, Geng Lu Jing has greatly contributed to the naming of China’s islands, reefs, and other features in the SCS.

Nevertheless, Geng Lu Jing also has its disadvantages. For example, it can easily drop out of public view during the process of oral transmission.Consequently, China shall intensify the efforts in its investigation, salvation,

collation and transmission.