ccTLDs
/ˌsiː-siː-tiː-ɛl-diːz/
n. “Country codes at the end of the internet.”
ccTLDs, short for country code Top-Level Domains, are two-letter top-level domains assigned to specific countries, territories, or regions. They appear at the far right of a domain name and are defined by the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country codes. Examples include .us for the United States, .uk for the United Kingdom, .de for Germany, and .jp for Japan.
Key characteristics of ccTLDs include:
gTLDs
/ˌdʒiː-tiː-ɛl-diːz/
n. “The top-level labels that tell you what kind of website you’re visiting.”
ICANN
/ˈaɪ-kæn/
n. “Keeps the Internet agreeing on names.”
ICANN, short for Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, is the global coordinating body responsible for maintaining coherence across the Internet’s naming and numbering systems. It does not control the Internet, own it, or operate networks. Its role is narrower, quieter, and far more delicate: ensuring that when someone types a domain name, the rest of the world agrees on what that name means.
IANA
/aɪ-ˈæn-ə/
n. “The quiet custodian of the Internet’s master keys.”
IANA, short for Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, is the organization responsible for coordinating some of the most fundamental pieces of the Internet’s infrastructure. It does not route traffic, host websites, or spy on packets. Instead, it manages the shared registries that allow the global network to function as a single, interoperable system rather than a collection of incompatible islands.
TLD
/ˌtiː-ɛl-ˈdiː/
n. “The suffix that tells the world who you are.”
TLD, short for Top-Level Domain, is the last segment of a domain name in the Domain Name System (DNS), appearing after the final dot. It represents the highest level in the hierarchical DNS structure and helps categorize domains by type, purpose, or geography. Common examples include .com, .org, .net, and country codes like .us or .jp.