# Luconia Shoals

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The Luconia Shoals, divided into the North and South Luconia Shoals, and sometimes known as the Luconia Reefs, are one of the largest reef and shoal complexes in the South China Sea. Some geographers classify the shoals as the southernmost part of the Spratly Islands. It is claimed by Malaysia, the People's Republic of China (Mainland China), and the Republic of China (Taiwan).
The Luconia Shoals and its surrounds are currently administered by Malaysia. The shoals have been gazetted as the country's largest marine national park, and also host several major Malaysian oil and natural gas exploration projects in the surrounding waters.

## Name

Luconia Shoals are a group of submerged shoals and reefs in the South China Sea, which divided into North Luconia Shoals and South Luconia Shoals.
The name "Luconia" originally comes from an old name for Luzon Island in the Philippines, depicted in old Latin, Italian, and Portuguese maps as "Luçonia" or "Luconia". However, the direct origin of the name Luconia Shoals comes from the British ship Luconia, which discovered the shoals during its 1776 voyage. The ship’s findings recorded the shoals at approximately 5°24′N, 112°30′E, with a depth of 1+1⁄2 fathoms (2.7 m), composed of hard rocks, and lying in a north-northeast to south-southwest direction. This discovery led to the shoals being named after the vessel.

### North Luconia Shoals

Malaysia refers to North Luconia Shoals as Gugusan Beting Raja Jarum ('Raja Jarum Shoals'), named after Datu' Undi, a Minangkabau leader in Sarawak who adopted the title Raja Jarum. Both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan) refer to North Luconia Shoals as Beikang Ansha (Chinese: 北康暗沙; pinyin: Běikāng Ànshā; lit. 'north-kang shoals').

### South Luconia Shoals

Malaysia refers to South Luconia Shoals as Gugusan Beting Patinggi Ali ('Patinggi Ali Shoals'), named after Datu Patinggi Ali, a well-known Sarawak Malay leader who led resistance against the Brunei Empire. Both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan) refer to South Luconia Shoals as Nankang Ansha (Chinese: 南康暗沙; pinyin: Nánkāng Ànshā; lit. 'south-kang shoals').
The Chinese name for the shoals, 'kang' (康) is actually the shortened form of 'Lu-kang-ni-ya' (盧康尼亞), which is a phonetic transliteration of the English name "Luconia".
Currently, neither Malaysia, People's Republic of China (Mainland China) nor Republic of China (Taiwan) has an official general name for the entire Luconia Shoals.

## Location

The shoals lie around 100 kilometres (62 mi) off the Sarawak coast of Borneo, inside the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Malaysia, and around 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) from Mainland China. The shoals are either part of the Spratly Islands, or southeast of what some sources consider to be the southernmost members of the Spratly Islands, such as Louisa Reef. Extending over an area of several thousand square kilometres, both the north and south groups of the shoals are permanently submerged at depths of 5 to 40 metres (16 to 131 ft) below sea level, with the exception of Luconia Breakers. There are extensive oil and natural gas resources under the seabed in this area, which is also home to various fish including manta rays, wrasse, and grouper. The shoals are also where the British barque Viscount Melbourne was wrecked on 5 January 1842.

## Features

| Feature | Malaysian | Chinese (Trad./Simp.) | Coordinates | Depth metres |
| North Luconia Shoals | Gugusan Beting Raja Jarum | Běikāng ànshā (北康暗沙) |
| Friendship Shoal | Beting Rentap | Méngyì ànshā (盟誼暗沙/盟谊暗沙) | 5°57′N 112°32′E﻿ / ﻿5.950°N 112.533°E﻿ / 5.950; 112.533﻿ (Friendship Shoal Mengyi Ansha (盟誼暗沙/盟谊暗沙) Beting Rentap) | 8.2 |
| Hardie Reef | Terumbu Asun | Hǎikāng ànshā (海康暗沙) | 5°56′N 112°31′E﻿ / ﻿5.933°N 112.517°E﻿ / 5.933; 112.517﻿ (Hardie Reef Haikang Ansha (海康暗沙) Terumbu Asun) | 5.1 |
| Aitken Reef | Terumbu Datuk Landih | Yìjìng Jiāo (義淨礁/义净礁) | 5°54′N 112°33′E﻿ / ﻿5.900°N 112.550°E﻿ / 5.900; 112.550﻿ (Aitken Reef Yijing Jiao (義淨礁/义净礁) Terumbu Datak Landih) | 9.4 |
| Buck Reef | Terumbu Linggir | Fǎxiǎn ànshā (法顯暗沙/法显暗沙) | 5°45′N 112°33′E﻿ / ﻿5.750°N 112.550°E﻿ / 5.750; 112.550﻿ (Buck Reef Faxian Ansha (法顯暗沙/法显暗沙) Terumbu Linggir) | 4.9 |
| Moody Reef | Terumbu Permaisuri | Kāngxī ànshā (康西暗沙) | 5°38′N 112°22′E﻿ / ﻿5.633°N 112.367°E﻿ / 5.633; 112.367﻿ (Moody Reef Kangxi Ansha (康西暗沙) Terumbu Permaisuri) | 7.3 |
| Seahorse Breakers | Hempasan Dang Ajar | Nán'ān Jiāo (南安礁) | 5°32′N 112°35′E﻿ / ﻿5.533°N 112.583°E﻿ / 5.533; 112.583﻿ (Seahorse Breakers Nan'an Jiao (南安礁) Hempasan Dang Ajar) | 2 |
| Tripp Reef | Terumbu Litong | Běi'ān Jiāo (北安礁) | 5°39′N 112°32′E﻿ / ﻿5.650°N 112.533°E﻿ / 5.650; 112.533﻿ (Tripp Reef Bei'an Jiao (北安礁) Terumbu Litong) | 3.7 |
| Hayes Reef | Terumbu Lang Ngindang | Nánpíng Jiāo (南屏礁) | 5°22′N 112°38′E﻿ / ﻿5.367°N 112.633°E﻿ / 5.367; 112.633﻿ (Hayes Reef Nanping Jiao (南屏礁) Terumbu Lang Ngindang) | <0 |
| South Luconia Shoals | Gugusan Beting Patinggi Ali | Nánkāng ànshā (南康暗沙) | |
| Stigant Reef | Terumbu Sahap | Hǎi'ān Jiāo (海安礁) | 5°02′N 112°30′E﻿ / ﻿5.033°N 112.500°E﻿ / 5.033; 112.500﻿ (Stigant Reef Hai'an Jiao (海安礁) Terumbu Sahap) | 4.6 |
| Connell Reef | Terumbu Dato Talip | Yǐnbō ànshā (隱波暗沙/隐波暗沙) | 5°06′N 112°34′E﻿ / ﻿5.100°N 112.567°E﻿ / 5.100; 112.567﻿ (Connell Reef Yinbo Ansha (隱波暗沙/隐波暗沙) Terumbu Dato Talip) | 1.8 |
| Herald Reef | Terumbu Saji | Hǎiníng Jiāo (海寧礁/海宁礁) | 4°57′N 112°37′E﻿ / ﻿4.950°N 112.617°E﻿ / 4.950; 112.617﻿ (Herald Reef Haining Jiao (海寧礁/海宁礁) Terumbu Saji) | 2 |
| Comus Shoal | Beting Merpati | Huānlè ànshā (歡樂暗沙/欢乐暗沙) | 5°01′N 112°56′E﻿ / ﻿5.017°N 112.933°E﻿ / 5.017; 112.933﻿ (Comus Shoal Huanle Ansha (歡樂暗沙/欢乐暗沙) Beting Merpati) | 8.2 |
| Richmond Reef | Terumbu Balingian | Tánmén Jiāo (潭門礁/潭门礁) | 5°04′N 112°43′E﻿ / ﻿5.067°N 112.717°E﻿ / 5.067; 112.717﻿ (Richmond Reef Tanmen Jiao (潭門礁/潭门礁) Terumbu Balingian) | 3.6 |
| Luconia Breakers | Hempasan Bantin | Qióngtái Jiāo (瓊台礁/琼台礁) | 5°01′N 112°38′E﻿ / ﻿5.017°N 112.633°E﻿ / 5.017; 112.633﻿ (Luconia Breakers Qiongtai Jiao (瓊台礁/琼台礁) Hempasan Bentin) | >0 |
| Sierra Blanca Reef$^1$ | Beting Batu Puteh | Chéngpíng Jiāo (澄平礁) | 4°51′N 112°32′E﻿ / ﻿4.850°N 112.533°E﻿ / 4.850; 112.533﻿ (Sierra Blanca Cheng Ping Jiao (澄平礁)) | 4.6 |
$^{1)}$Sierra Blanca Reef is also listed separately from South Luconia Shoals, situated about 12 miles southwestward of the latter. Its least depth is given as 2½ fathoms. Besides, Beting Batu Puteh is not the official name released by Malaysia for Sierra Blanca Reef, but a name used informally.

## Satellite Images

* Landsat 7 image of North Luconia Shoals
* Landsat 7 image of South Luconia Shoals not showing Herald Reef 5 km southwest of Luconia Breakers

## Territorial disputes

The Luconia shoals are administered by Malaysia, and are claimed by the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the People's Republic of China.

### Malaysia

The shoals are administered by Malaysia, and the Royal Malaysian Navy and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency maintains a 24/7 presence in the area to monitor the shoals. Malaysia's Fisheries Research Institute has conducted studies on the area since 2004. Malaysia organises an annual International Deep Sea Fishing Tournament on the shoals with participants departing from the Marina Bay in Miri and heading up to the area for 3 days. The participant who catches the biggest fish is proclaimed the winner of the tournament.
On 31 August 2015, amateur marine archaeologist Captain Hans Berekoven with his wife and a team of marine researchers, as well as the Sarawak Museum curator, went to the shoals to plant a Malaysian flag. Berekoven said the move was important to warn China to back down, and to urge the Malaysian government to take a serious look into the archaeological history of the area because the Sunda Shelf may have hosted a civilisation 12,000 years ago.

### China

In June 2015, Malaysian authorities detected a China Coast Guard vessel entering the area. It appears to be anchored at the shoals, about 150 kilometres north of Malaysian Borneo—well inside the 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) exclusive economic zone claimed by Malaysia. The Chinese vessel has been warned to leave the area and is monitored closely by the Royal Malaysian Navy. Malaysia lodged a protest over China's incursion into its waters, as Chinese ships had been in Malaysian waters for more than two years. In a statement in 2015 by a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Shahidan Kassim, he said "We have never received any official claims from them (China) and they said the island (Beting Patinggi Ali) belongs to them, but the country is 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) away. We are taking diplomatic action but in whatever approach, they have to get out of our national waters". The Malaysian government has since sent diplomatic notes every week to protest against the intrusion. There have also been reports that crews aboard the Chinese vessel threatened to shoot local Malaysian fishermen who attempted to fish in the area.
On 31 March 2016, Malaysia summoned the Chinese ambassador in Kuala Lumpur to protest the presence of around 100 Chinese fishing boats at Luconia Shoals. Until March, the Malaysian government rarely rebuked China in public to avoid disturbances to Sino-Malay relations as Beijing emerges as the Malaysian economy's main investor. Kuala Lumpur has "consistently played down China's activities in our territories", said Wan Saiful Wan Jan, chief executive of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs, a Malaysian think tank. "This could be to protect our commercial interest, or it could also be to avoid the public...realising how useless our defences are".