this
Structure
- Demonstrative
[near the speaker]
I know that this isn’t the correct answer to the sentence “this is the sea” but is the following also a kind of valid translation (since the thing the sentence is talking about is a place):
ここは海です
I think if you were actually standing at/in the sea then yes. But the sentence これは海です is a bit broader, where it could also fit in a scenario where you are pointing at a picture or something.