Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan (East Sea (of Korea); see below) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bound by the Japanese islands of Hokkaido, Honshu and Kyushu and Sakhalin island on the east, and the Korean peninsula and Russia on the west.
The sea is connected to other seas by six shallow straits: the Strait of Tartary or Mamiya Strait between the Asian mainland and Sakhalin; La Perouse Strait or Soya Strait between the islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaido; Tsugaru Strait between the islands of Hokkaido and Honshu; Kanmon Strait between the islands of Honshu and Kyushu; Tsushima Strait between the islands of Kyushu and Tsushima; and Korea Strait between Tsushima and the Korean peninsula.
The deepest point is 3712 meters below sea level. The sea has two major basins, Yamato Basin and Japan Basin. They are rich fishing grounds.
Name
The sea is called:
- Sea of Japan - Nihonkai or Nipponkai (日本海) in Japanese, Rìběnhǎi (日本海) in Chinese, ЯпонскоеМоре in Russian;
- East Sea - Donghae (동해; 東海) in South Korean;
- East Sea of Korea - Dongjoseonhae (동조선해; 東朝鮮海) in North Korean;
