(VOVworld) – A book in Chinese-transcribed Vietnamese confirming Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Truong Sa and Hoang Sa archipelagoes made its debut in Hanoi on Tuesday.

Notes about the Golden Sand or Hoang Sa archipelago in " The Collection of Route Map from the Capital to the Four Directions"

The book comprises 46 documents - maps, sets of historical and geographical monographs, volumes of administrative documents, and a collection of poems - fully recording Vietnamese sovereignty over the archipelagoes and territorial waters of the East Sea. Most worthy of note is the map, entitled ‘The Collection of Route Map from the Capital to the Four Directions’ compiled by Do Ba in about 1630. It clearly shows Hoang Sa Archipelago in the East Sea with the name of ‘Bai Cat Vang’ or Golden sand which is about 400 miles long and 20 miles wide.

Associate Professor Trinh Khac Manh says the book is of scientific significance and is legal foundation to confirm Vietnam’s sovereignty over territorial waters in the East Sea

Associate Professor Trinh Khac Manh, former Director of the Han-Nom Research Institute, said that the ancient documents gathered in the book have once again proven that the Vietnamese state since feudal times paid attention to the surveying, planting of landmarks, and creating a map of its territory. Manh said: “We already have a 3,000 page book confirming Vietnam’s sovereignty over its islands in the East Sea. Based on this book and criteria set by researchers, we present the 46 documents which are legitimate because it has been a documentary system used by the Vietnamese state since its feudal period. ”