Why is Thi Nai lagoon called Thi Nai bay?

Poster quảng cáo sự kiện có ghi — The event poster says "THI NAI BAY" - Photo: LAM THIEN

Regarding the name "Thi Nai Bay", on March 21, in Quy Nhon City, a press conference was held to announce the UIM-ABP Aquabike World Championship and meet the athletes.

At the press conference, reporters asked the organizers about the posters advertising the race saying: "Amazing Binh Dinh Fest 2024 - Tinh hoa dat vo - March 22 to March 31 Thi Nai Bay - Quy Nhon City".

Why is "Thi Nai lagoon" called "Thi Nai bay"?

Answering this question, Mr. Tran Viet Anh - representative of the race organizing committee - said: "In Vietnam, we still call it Thi Nai lagoon when talking about F1H2O boat racing and jet skiing.

But when promoting the race internationally, we discussed and asked for opinions from Binh Dinh province and experts to change it to Thi Nai Bay (Thi Nai Bay) to promote it better."

In a document sent to the press by a Binh Dinh provincial authority to promote this event, it was also written as "Thi Nai Bay":

"Currently, we do not have any water motorbike racers to compete in the UIM-ABP Aquabike World Championship. But the opportunity to stand on the green race track of Thi Nai Bay is still there for Vietnamese athletes."

Some newspapers also wrote Thi Nai lagoon as Thi Nai bay, such as: "Locals and tourists stand in the sun to watch jet ski racing at Thi Nai bay"; "Binh Dinh holds press conference about international jet ski racing at Thi Nai bay",...

The incident was then further debated on social media. Many Binh Dinh residents disagreed with the name Thi Nai lagoon as Thi Nai bay.

"Why do you suddenly call Thi Nai lagoon a bay?", "Calling the lagoon a bay is not any more elegant"...

Cửa vào đầm Thị Nại từ biển rất nhỏ và kín - Ảnh: LÂM THIÊN — The entrance to Thi Nai lagoon from the sea is very small and closed - Photo: LAM THIEN

Just called Thi Nai lagoon

Responding to Tuoi Tre Online on the above issue, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Binh Dinh province said that according to Clause 5, Article 4, Circular 23-2010/TT-BTNMT dated October 26, 2020 stipulates:

"A bay is a part of the sea indented by the continent or by a barrier island forming a closed body of water to a certain extent in which the marine dynamics dominate, located within the coastal strip, limited to a depth of not more than 6m at low tide".

In Clause 2, Article 10 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (December 10, 1982) it is stipulated:

"A bay is to be understood as a well-marked indentation whose depth is in proportion to the width of its mouth to the extent that the water of the indentation is surrounded by the shore and the indentation is little more than a curvature of the coast.

However, a depression is only considered a bay if its area is at least equal to the area of a semicircle whose diameter is a straight line drawn across the entrance to the depression".

Also according to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Binh Dinh province, according to the definition in Appendix I, Circular 07-2020/BTNMT dated August 31, 2020:

"Coastal lagoons are coastal bodies of water with salt, brackish or very salty water, separated from the sea by a form of accumulation such as sand bars or coral reefs and connected to the sea through one or more gates".

Therefore, for a long time, the natural resources and environment sector has only called it Thi Nai lagoon, not Thi Nai bay.

Don't change from lagoon to bay.

According to history doctor Dinh Ba Hoa - former director of Binh Dinh Museum, Thi Nai lagoon should be called a lagoon, not a bay.

"Thi Nai lagoon has a very narrow entrance, different from the entrance of the bay: very wide. Since the Champa period, people have called it Thi Nai lagoon.

On all world maps, Thi Nai lagoon is called a lagoon, so we cannot change it to Thi Nai bay. There is no difference between a bay and a lagoon. According to convention, a bay is wide in front, while a lagoon is narrow," Mr. Hoa added.

According to Mr. Hoa's explanation, the lagoon is located deep inland, while Thi Nai lagoon is located in Quy Nhon city, Tuy Phuoc district and Phu Cat district, and is filled with mud every year. But the bay is not like that.

"The water surface of Thi Nai lagoon is only about 2-3m, the bottom is all mud. This is the environment for many aquatic species to live: freshwater shrimp, crabs, brackish water fish... These aquatic species can only live in the lagoon, not in the bay.

Moreover, the name Thi Nai lagoon is closely associated with the history of our land, people and country in the past. Therefore, arbitrarily changing the word lagoon to bay is not advisable," Mr. Hoa analyzed.

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