URN stands for Uniform Resource Name. A URN is a type of Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) that uniquely identifies a resource by name, without specifying its location or how to access it. Unlike a URL, which provides a path to access a resource (like https://www.example.com/page
), a URN simply defines the identity of a resource, ensuring it remains unique across contexts.
For example, a URN might look like this: urn:isbn:978-3-16-148410-0
, which uniquely identifies a specific book by its International Standard Book Number (ISBN), regardless of where the book is stored or how it might be accessed.