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When you visit a website, you might notice addresses ending with things like .in (India), .uk (United Kingdom), or .jp (Japan). These short codes are called “country code top-level domains” (ccTLDs), and every country has one. But how do these codes come about, and who gets to decide them?
Back in the early days of the internet, people realised that websites needed to be organised by country, so each country was given a unique two-letter code. This system is managed by a global organisation called the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, or IANA for short.
Most of the country codes come from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which already had a list of two-letter country abbreviations. For example, IN for India, UK for the United Kingdom, and JP for Japan. The IANA uses these same codes to create the ccTLDs.
Once a code is set up, it’s managed by a group within the country—sometimes the government, a university, or even a private company. This group decides who can register websites with that code and sets the rules for how they are used. For example, you might need to prove you’re a resident to get a .au (Australia) website address.
These country codes help keep the internet organised and make it easier to find local information. So next time you see a website ending in .za or .br, you’ll know it’s from South Africa or Brazil! It’s a clever way for the world to stay connected, while still showing a bit of national identity online.
Some codes aren’t what you expect
The United Kingdom uses .uk, but its ISO code is GB (for Great Britain). The .uk domain was chosen instead of .gb to match common usage.
One domain code per continent
.eu is the code for the European Union, which is not a single country but a group of member nations.
Tuvalu earns millions
.tv belongs to Tuvalu, a small Pacific nation, but is used worldwide for television-related sites. Tuvalu earns millions by licensing its domain!
Tiny countries, big domains
The code .io stands for the British Indian Ocean Territory. It’s popular with tech start-ups because “I/O” also means input/output in computing.
Not every code is in use
Some country codes, like .bv (Bouvet Island), exist but are not used for any websites at all.
Re-assigned or retired
The old .su domain for the Soviet Union still exists, even though the country no longer does.
Reflects political changes
After South Sudan became independent in 2011, it got its own domain: .ss.
Special code for 'no country'
.root is used behind the scenes by computers to help run the global domain system, but you’ll never see it in a web address.
Vatican has its own code
The world’s smallest country uses .va for Vatican City!
Some codes have strict rules
The domain code, .fr (France) is for French residents or businesses only, while .co (Colombia) is open for anyone and often used for company sites around the world.