BEIJING - The National Library of China plans to compile a collection of historical documents and atlases to prove that Diaoyu Island and its affiliated islets in the East China Sea are China's inherent territory.

The collection will feature both Chinese and overseas historical documents and atlases covering the Diaoyu islands, according to a seminar held by the library on Monday.

It will include an atlas drawn by the British in 1801 called "a new map of China" and one drawn by the French in 1821 called the "Carte de la Chine et du Japon," as well as documents from libraries in Japan, the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom.

The book is aimed at showing that the Diaoyu Islands were first discovered, named and exploited by the Chinese people and they have been China's inherent territory since ancient times, according to the library.