Kalayaan Island Group – TYPiNG ouT oF THe BLue

The Philippines assigned Filipino names to 131 features in the Kalayaan Island Group (West Philippine Sea), while their internationally known names continue to be used.

The list below shows some of the names publicly mentioned in available sources. The complete list of 131 features is found in the annex of Executive Order No. 111.

MAIN FEATURES

• Pag-asa Island (Thitu Island)
• Likas Island (West York Island)
• Parola Island (Northeast Cay)
• Kota Island (Loaita Island)
• Lawak Island (Nanshan Island)
• Panata Island (Lankiam Cay)
• Patag Island (Flat Island)
• Rizal Reef (Commodore Reef)

KEY REEFS

• Zamora Reef (Subi Reef)
• Julian Felipe Reef (Whitsun Reef)
• Panganiban Reef (Mischief Reef)
• Mabini Reef (Johnson South Reef)
• Burgos Reef (Gaven Reef)
• Calderon Reef (Cuarteron Reef)
• Gabriela Silang Reef (Fiery Cross Reef)
• Bonifacio Reef (Eldad Reef)
• Luna Reef (McKennan Reef)
• Del Pilar Reef (Namyit Reef)
• Aguinaldo Reef (Half Moon Shoal)

SHOALS AND BANKS

• Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal)
• Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal)
• Escoda Shoal (Sabina Shoal)
• Recto Bank (Reed Bank)
• Buliluyan Shoal (Iroquois Reef)
• Balagtas Reef (Irving Reef)
• Roxas Reef (Investigator Shoal)
• Quezon Shoal (Royal Captain Shoal)

Other names mentioned

• Silang Shoal
• Katipunan Reef
• Kalayaan Bank
• Mabuhay Reef
• Diwata Reef
• Lapu-Lapu Reef
• Malaya Shoal
• Bagani Reef
• Bantay Reef
• Dagat Shoal
• Silangan Reef
• Kanluran Reef
• Hilaga Shoal
• Timog Reef

These names do something simple but important. They bring consistency to maps and official use, give agencies and schools a shared reference, and make each reef, shoal, and bank easier to identify. They also support coordination in mapping, patrol, and research. They also come at a time when these waters are being questioned and challenged. Giving them Filipino names is a quiet but firm way of expressing Philippine presence. It puts a clear identity on places that might otherwise be seen as distant or disputed. It is not loud, but it is deliberate. In a situation where presence matters, even a name carries weight. And once a place is named, it is no longer distant. It becomes something that belongs—and something worth standing for.

ᴛʸᵖⁱⁿᵍ ᴏᵘᵗ ᵒᶠ ᵗʰᵉ ʙˡᵘᵉ ᵈᵃʳᵉᵐ ᵐᵘˢⁱᶜ ᵇˡᵒᵍ

South China Sea or West Philippine Sea?

“The world is called Earth by man, but man does not own the world.”

We give names to everything—the mountains, the stars, the seas.

South China Sea. West Philippine Sea. Different names, different claims. But in truth, these waters don’t belong to us. They were here before we drew borders, before maps, before treaties.

The sea is a gift from God. It was never meant to be carved up like property. Nations fight over it, but the water does not fight back. It simply flows, silent and eternal.

History is older than paper, and these waters have carried fishermen and sailors for centuries. But history here is not the story of one nation alone—many peoples lived, traveled, and relied on this sea. Modern law arrived later to bring order when histories overlap. And let’s be honest—disputes sharpened when oil, gas, and rich fisheries came into focus.

The fight today is not really about names or maps. It’s about resources, power, pride. Strip that away and the sea remains what it always was: God’s sea, not man’s.

So call it what you will. Claim it, defend it, debate it. In the end, the waters don’t bend to our arguments. They remind us of one truth—what we fight to own was never ours in the first place.

Claims and Reality Check

China’s Claim	Philippines’ Claim
Nine-Dash Line (1947): first published by the Republic of China after WWII, citing older Ming/Qing maps and usage to argue centuries of presence	Kalayaan Island Group (1978): PD 1596 by Marcos Sr declared part of the Spratlys as Philippine territory (disputed by other states)
“Historical rights”: longstanding use should outweigh newer treaty rules	UNCLOS (1982): grants coastal states a 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)
Control in practice (1990s–present): since Mischief Reef (1995), artificial islands, airstrips, and bases expanded Chinese presence	Arbitration (2016): UNCLOS Annex VII tribunal ruled the nine-dash line has no lawful effect against PH maritime entitlements and did not decide land sovereignty
—	Geography: features like Scarborough Shoal lie far closer to Luzon than to China’s mainland
Reality Check
On paper: the Philippines is right under international law On the ground: China acts like it’s right — coast guard ships, navy, and island bases enforce their claim Why the clash: law vs power. The law favors the Philippines, but power favors China