section_path: Etymology
section_name: Etymology
paragraph_text: Etymology
  
  The Indian Ocean has been known by its present name since at least 1515, when the Latin form Oceanus Orientalis Indicus (lit. ' Indian Eastern Ocean ') is attested, named after India, which projects into it. It was earlier known as the Eastern Ocean, a term that was still in use during the mid-18th century, as opposed to the Western Ocean (Atlantic) before the Pacific was surmised. In modern times, the name Afro-Asian Ocean has occasionally been used.
  
  The Hindi name for the Ocean is हिंद महासागर (Hind Mahāsāgar; lit. transl. Ocean of India). Conversely, Chinese explorers (e.g., Zheng He during the Ming dynasty) who traveled to the Indian Ocean during the 15th century called it the Western Oceans. In Ancient Greek geography, the Indian Ocean region known to the Greeks was called the Erythraean Sea.