ISO 639-2 Language Code List

List of all ISO 639-2 language codes

The ISO 639-2 is an international standard that defines codes that uniquely represent language names. It uses a three-letter code set and currently supports over 490 languages. This standard was developed in response to the limitations of ISO 639-1, which was not sufficient to cover all language requirements for bibliographic and terminology purposes. Language codes from ISO 639-2 were initially designed for use by libraries, information services, and publishers to denote languages during the exchange of information. However, today they are also widely used in computerized systems. Since its inception, the standard has undergone multiple revisions and is still periodically maintained.

Typical applications of these language codes include cataloging in libraries, organizing content in information systems by language, language identification in publishing, use as language identifiers in software localization, and acting as shorthand for longer language names.

ISO 639-2 Language Code List

The language code table is shown below.

ISO Codesorted ascendingLanguageScriptsText DirectionPlural Rules

aar

Afar

Left-to-Right

abk

Abkhazian

Left-to-Right

ace

Achinese

Left-to-Right

ach

Acoli

Left-to-Right

ada

Adangme

Left-to-Right

ady

Adygei, Adyghe

Left-to-Right

afa

Afro-Asiatic languages

Left-to-Right

afh

Afrihili

Left-to-Right

afr

Afrikaans

Left-to-Right

ain

Ainu (Japan)

Left-to-Right

aka

Akan

Left-to-Right

akk

Akkadian

Left-to-Right

alb

Albanian (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

ale

Aleut

Left-to-Right

alg

Algonquian languages

Left-to-Right

alt

Southern Altai

Left-to-Right

amh

Amharic

Left-to-Right

ang

Old English (ca. 450-1100)

Left-to-Right

anp

Angika

Left-to-Right

apa

Apache languages

Left-to-Right

ara

Arabic

Right-to-Left

arc

Imperial Aramaic (700-300 BCE), Official Aramaic (700-300 BCE)

Right-to-Left

arg

Aragonese

Left-to-Right

arm

Armenian (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

arn

Mapuche, Mapudungun

Left-to-Right

arp

Arapaho

Left-to-Right

art

Artificial languages

Left-to-Right

arw

Arawak

Left-to-Right

asm

Assamese

Left-to-Right

ast

Asturian, Asturleonese, Bable, Leonese

Left-to-Right

ath

Athapascan languages

Left-to-Right

aus

Australian languages

Left-to-Right

ava

Avaric

Left-to-Right

ave

Avestan

Left-to-Right

awa

Awadhi

Left-to-Right

aym

Aymara

Left-to-Right

aze

Azerbaijani

Left-to-Right

bad

Banda languages

Left-to-Right

bai

Bamileke languages

Left-to-Right

bak

Bashkir

Left-to-Right

bal

Baluchi

Right-to-Left

bam

Bambara

Left-to-Right

ban

Balinese

Left-to-Right

baq

Basque (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

bas

Basa (Cameroon)

Left-to-Right

bat

Baltic languages

Left-to-Right

bej

Bedawiyet, Beja

Left-to-Right

bel

Belarusian

Left-to-Right

bem

Bemba (Zambia)

Left-to-Right

ben

Bengali

Left-to-Right

ber

Berber languages

Left-to-Right

bho

Bhojpuri

Left-to-Right

bih

Bihari languages

Left-to-Right

bik

Bikol

Left-to-Right

bin

Bini, Edo

Left-to-Right

bis

Bislama

Left-to-Right

bla

Siksika

Left-to-Right

bnt

Bantu languages

Left-to-Right

bod

Tibetan (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

bos

Bosnian

Left-to-Right

bra

Braj

Left-to-Right

bre

Breton

Left-to-Right

btk

Batak languages

Left-to-Right

bua

Buriat

Left-to-Right

bug

Buginese

Left-to-Right

bul

Bulgarian

Left-to-Right

bur

Burmese (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

byn

Bilin, Blin

Left-to-Right

cad

Caddo

Left-to-Right

cai

Central American Indian languages

Left-to-Right

car

Galibi Carib

Left-to-Right

cat

Catalan, Valencian

Left-to-Right

cau

Caucasian languages

Left-to-Right

ceb

Cebuano

Left-to-Right

cel

Celtic languages

Left-to-Right

ces

Czech (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

cha

Chamorro

Left-to-Right

chb

Chibcha

Left-to-Right

che

Chechen

Left-to-Right

chg

Chagatai

Left-to-Right

chi

Chinese (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

chk

Chuukese

Left-to-Right

chm

Mari (Russia)

Left-to-Right

chn

Chinook jargon

Left-to-Right

cho

Choctaw

Left-to-Right

chp

Chipewyan, Dene Suline

Left-to-Right

chr

Cherokee

Left-to-Right

chu

Church Slavic, Church Slavonic, Old Bulgarian, Old Church Slavonic, Old Slavonic

Left-to-Right

chv

Chuvash

Left-to-Right

chy

Cheyenne

Left-to-Right

cmc

Chamic languages

Left-to-Right

cnr

Montenegrin

Left-to-Right

cop

Coptic

Left-to-Right

cor

Cornish

Left-to-Right

cos

Corsican

Left-to-Right

cpe

English based creoles and pidgins

Left-to-Right

cpf

French-based creoles and pidgins

Left-to-Right

cpp

Portuguese-based creoles and pidgins

Left-to-Right

cre

Cree

Left-to-Right

crh

Crimean Tatar, Crimean Turkish

Left-to-Right

crp

Creoles and pidgins

Left-to-Right

csb

Kashubian

Left-to-Right

cus

Cushitic languages

Left-to-Right

cym

Welsh (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

cze

Czech (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

dak

Dakota

Left-to-Right

dan

Danish

Left-to-Right

dar

Dargwa

Left-to-Right

day

Land Dayak languages

Left-to-Right

del

Delaware

Left-to-Right

den

Slave (Athapascan)

Left-to-Right

deu

German (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

dgr

Dogrib, Tłı̨chǫ

Left-to-Right

din

Dinka

Left-to-Right

div

Dhivehi, Divehi, Maldivian

Right-to-Left

doi

Dogri (macrolanguage)

Left-to-Right

dra

Dravidian languages

Left-to-Right

dsb

Lower Sorbian

Left-to-Right

dua

Duala

Left-to-Right

dum

Middle Dutch (ca. 1050-1350)

Left-to-Right

dut

Dutch, Flemish (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

dyu

Dyula

Left-to-Right

dzo

Dzongkha

Left-to-Right

efi

Efik

Left-to-Right

egy

Egyptian (Ancient)

Left-to-Right

eka

Ekajuk

Left-to-Right

ell

Modern Greek (1453-) (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

elx

Elamite

Left-to-Right

eng

English

Left-to-Right

enm

Middle English (1100-1500)

Left-to-Right

epo

Esperanto

Left-to-Right

est

Estonian

Left-to-Right

eus

Basque (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

ewe

Ewe

Left-to-Right

ewo

Ewondo

Left-to-Right

fan

Fang (Equatorial Guinea)

Left-to-Right

fao

Faroese

Left-to-Right

fas

Persian (Terminology)

Right-to-Left

fat

Fanti

Left-to-Right

fij

Fijian

Left-to-Right

fil

Filipino, Pilipino

Left-to-Right

fin

Finnish

Left-to-Right

fiu

Finno-Ugrian languages

Left-to-Right

fon

Fon

Left-to-Right

fra

French (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

fre

French (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

frm

Middle French (ca. 1400-1600)

Left-to-Right

fro

Old French (842-ca. 1400)

Left-to-Right

frr

Northern Frisian

Left-to-Right

frs

Eastern Frisian

Left-to-Right

fry

Western Frisian

Left-to-Right

ful

Fulah

Left-to-Right

fur

Friulian

Left-to-Right

gaa

Ga

Left-to-Right

gay

Gayo

Left-to-Right

gba

Gbaya (Central African Republic)

Left-to-Right

gem

Germanic languages

Left-to-Right

geo

Georgian (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

ger

German (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

gez

Geez

Left-to-Right

gil

Gilbertese

Left-to-Right

gla

Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic

Left-to-Right

gle

Irish

Left-to-Right

glg

Galician

Left-to-Right

glv

Manx

Left-to-Right

gmh

Middle High German (ca. 1050-1500)

Left-to-Right

goh

Old High German (ca. 750-1050)

Left-to-Right

gon

Gondi

Left-to-Right

gor

Gorontalo

Left-to-Right

got

Gothic

Left-to-Right

grb

Grebo

Left-to-Right

grc

Ancient Greek (to 1453)

Left-to-Right

gre

Modern Greek (1453-) (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

grn

Guarani

Left-to-Right

gsw

Alemannic, Alsatian, Swiss German

Left-to-Right

guj

Gujarati

Left-to-Right

gwi

Gwichʼin

Left-to-Right

hai

Haida

Left-to-Right

hat

Haitian, Haitian Creole

Left-to-Right

hau

Hausa

Right-to-Left

haw

Hawaiian

Left-to-Right

heb

Hebrew

Right-to-Left

her

Herero

Left-to-Right

hil

Hiligaynon

Left-to-Right

him

Himachali languages, Western Pahari languages

Left-to-Right

hin

Hindi

Left-to-Right

hit

Hittite

Left-to-Right

hmn

Hmong, Mong

Left-to-Right

hmo

Hiri Motu

Left-to-Right

hrv

Croatian

Left-to-Right

hsb

Upper Sorbian

Left-to-Right

hun

Hungarian

Left-to-Right

hup

Hupa

Left-to-Right

hye

Armenian (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

iba

Iban

Left-to-Right

ibo

Igbo

Left-to-Right

ice

Icelandic (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

ido

Ido

Left-to-Right

iii

Nuosu, Sichuan Yi

Left-to-Right

ijo

Ijo languages

Left-to-Right

iku

Inuktitut

Left-to-Right

ile

Interlingue, Occidental

Left-to-Right

ilo

Iloko

Left-to-Right

ina

Interlingua (International Auxiliary Language Association)

Left-to-Right

inc

Indic languages

Left-to-Right

ind

Indonesian

Left-to-Right

ine

Indo-European languages

Left-to-Right

inh

Ingush

Left-to-Right

ipk

Inupiaq

Left-to-Right

ira

Iranian languages

Left-to-Right

iro

Iroquoian languages

Left-to-Right

isl

Icelandic (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

ita

Italian

Left-to-Right

jav

Javanese

Left-to-Right

jbo

Lojban

Left-to-Right

jpn

Japanese

Left-to-Right

jpr

Judeo-Persian

Right-to-Left

jrb

Judeo-Arabic

Right-to-Left

kaa

Kara-Kalpak, Karakalpak

Left-to-Right

kab

Kabyle

Left-to-Right

kac

Jingpho, Kachin

Left-to-Right

kal

Greenlandic, Kalaallisut

Left-to-Right

kam

Kamba (Kenya)

Left-to-Right

kan

Kannada

Left-to-Right

kar

Karen languages

Left-to-Right

kas

Kashmiri

Right-to-Left

kat

Georgian (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

kau

Kanuri

Left-to-Right

kaw

Kawi

Left-to-Right

kaz

Kazakh

Left-to-Right

kbd

Kabardian

Left-to-Right

kha

Khasi

Left-to-Right

khi

Khoisan languages

Left-to-Right

khm

Central Khmer, Khmer

Left-to-Right

kho

Khotanese, Sakan

Left-to-Right

kik

Gikuyu, Kikuyu

Left-to-Right

kin

Kinyarwanda

Left-to-Right

kir

Kirghiz, Kyrgyz

Left-to-Right

kmb

Kimbundu

Left-to-Right

kok

Konkani (macrolanguage)

Left-to-Right

kom

Komi

Left-to-Right

kon

Kongo

Left-to-Right

kor

Korean

Left-to-Right

kos

Kosraean

Left-to-Right

kpe

Kpelle

Left-to-Right

krc

Karachay-Balkar

Left-to-Right

krl

Karelian

Left-to-Right

kro

Kru languages

Left-to-Right

kru

Kurukh

Left-to-Right

kua

Kuanyama, Kwanyama

Left-to-Right

kum

Kumyk

Left-to-Right

kur

Kurdish

Right-to-Left

kut

Kutenai

Left-to-Right

lad

Ladino

Left-to-Right

lah

Lahnda

Left-to-Right

lam

Lamba

Left-to-Right

lao

Lao

Left-to-Right

lat

Latin

Left-to-Right

lav

Latvian

Left-to-Right

lez

Lezghian

Left-to-Right

lim

Limburgan, Limburger, Limburgish

Left-to-Right

lin

Lingala

Left-to-Right

lit

Lithuanian

Left-to-Right

lol

Mongo

Left-to-Right

loz

Lozi

Left-to-Right

ltz

Letzeburgesch, Luxembourgish

Left-to-Right

lua

Luba-Lulua

Left-to-Right

lub

Luba-Katanga

Left-to-Right

lug

Ganda

Left-to-Right

lui

Luiseno

Left-to-Right

lun

Lunda

Left-to-Right

luo

Dholuo, Luo (Kenya and Tanzania)

Left-to-Right

lus

Lushai

Left-to-Right

mac

Macedonian (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

mad

Madurese

Left-to-Right

mag

Magahi

Left-to-Right

mah

Marshallese

Left-to-Right

mai

Maithili

Left-to-Right

mak

Makasar

Left-to-Right

mal

Malayalam

Left-to-Right

man

Manding, Mandingo

Left-to-Right

mao

Maori (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

map

Austronesian languages

Left-to-Right

mar

Marathi

Left-to-Right

mas

Masai

Left-to-Right

may

Malay (macrolanguage) (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

mdf

Moksha

Left-to-Right

mdr

Mandar

Left-to-Right

men

Mende (Sierra Leone)

Left-to-Right

mga

Middle Irish (900-1200)

Left-to-Right

mic

Mi'kmaq, Micmac

Left-to-Right

min

Minangkabau

Left-to-Right

mis

Uncoded languages

Left-to-Right

mkd

Macedonian (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

mkh

Mon-Khmer languages

Left-to-Right

mlg

Malagasy

Left-to-Right

mlt

Maltese

Left-to-Right

mnc

Manchu

Left-to-Right

mni

Manipuri

Left-to-Right

mno

Manobo languages

Left-to-Right

moh

Mohawk

Left-to-Right

mon

Mongolian

Left-to-Right

mos

Mossi

Left-to-Right

mri

Maori (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

msa

Malay (macrolanguage) (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

mul

Multiple languages

Left-to-Right

mun

Munda languages

Left-to-Right

mus

Creek

Left-to-Right

mwl

Mirandese

Left-to-Right

mwr

Marwari

Left-to-Right

mya

Burmese (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

myn

Mayan languages

Left-to-Right

myv

Erzya

Left-to-Right

nah

Nahuatl languages

Left-to-Right

nai

North American Indian

Left-to-Right

nap

Neapolitan

Left-to-Right

nau

Nauru

Left-to-Right

nav

Navaho, Navajo

Left-to-Right

nbl

South Ndebele

Left-to-Right

nde

North Ndebele

Left-to-Right

ndo

Ndonga

Left-to-Right

nds

Low German, Low Saxon

Left-to-Right

nep

Nepali (macrolanguage)

Left-to-Right

new

Nepal Bhasa, Newari

Left-to-Right

nia

Nias

Left-to-Right

nic

Niger-Kordofanian languages

Left-to-Right

niu

Niuean

Left-to-Right

nld

Dutch, Flemish (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

nno

Norwegian Nynorsk

Left-to-Right

nob

Norwegian Bokmål

Left-to-Right

nog

Nogai

Left-to-Right

non

Old Norse

Left-to-Right

nor

Norwegian

Left-to-Right

nqo

N'Ko

Right-to-Left

nso

Northern Sotho, Pedi, Sepedi

Left-to-Right

nub

Nubian languages

Left-to-Right

nwc

Classical Nepal Bhasa, Classical Newari, Old Newari

Left-to-Right

nya

Chewa, Chichewa, Nyanja

Left-to-Right

nym

Nyamwezi

Left-to-Right

nyn

Nyankole

Left-to-Right

nyo

Nyoro

Left-to-Right

nzi

Nzima

Left-to-Right

oci

Occitan (post 1500)

Left-to-Right

oji

Ojibwa

Left-to-Right

ori

Oriya (macrolanguage)

Left-to-Right

orm

Oromo

Left-to-Right

osa

Osage

Left-to-Right

oss

Ossetian, Ossetic

Left-to-Right

ota

Ottoman Turkish (1500-1928)

Right-to-Left

oto

Otomian languages

Left-to-Right

paa

Papuan languages

Left-to-Right

pag

Pangasinan

Left-to-Right

pal

Pahlavi

Left-to-Right

pam

Kapampangan, Pampanga

Left-to-Right

pan

Panjabi, Punjabi

Left-to-Right

pap

Papiamento

Left-to-Right

pau

Palauan

Left-to-Right

peo

Old Persian (ca. 600-400 B.C.)

Left-to-Right

per

Persian (Bibliographic)

Right-to-Left

phi

Philippine languages

Left-to-Right

phn

Phoenician

Left-to-Right

pli

Pali

Left-to-Right

pol

Polish

Left-to-Right

pon

Pohnpeian

Left-to-Right

por

Portuguese

Left-to-Right

pra

Prakrit languages

Left-to-Right

pro

Old Occitan (to 1500), Old Provençal (to 1500)

Left-to-Right

pus

Pashto, Pushto

Right-to-Left

que

Quechua

Left-to-Right

raj

Rajasthani

Left-to-Right

rap

Rapanui

Left-to-Right

rar

Cook Islands Maori, Rarotongan

Left-to-Right

roa

Romance languages

Left-to-Right

roh

Romansh

Left-to-Right

rom

Romany

Left-to-Right

ron

Moldavian, Moldovan, Romanian (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

rum

Moldavian, Moldovan, Romanian (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

run

Rundi

Left-to-Right

rup

Aromanian, Arumanian, Macedo-Romanian

Left-to-Right

rus

Russian

Left-to-Right

sad

Sandawe

Left-to-Right

sag

Sango

Left-to-Right

sah

Yakut

Left-to-Right

sai

South American Indian languages

Left-to-Right

sal

Salishan languages

Left-to-Right

sam

Samaritan Aramaic

Right-to-Left

san

Sanskrit

Left-to-Right

sas

Sasak

Left-to-Right

sat

Santali

Left-to-Right

scn

Sicilian

Left-to-Right

sco

Scots

Left-to-Right

sel

Selkup

Left-to-Right

sem

Semitic languages

Left-to-Right

sga

Old Irish (to 900)

Left-to-Right

sgn

Sign Languages

Left-to-Right

shn

Shan

Left-to-Right

sid

Sidamo

Left-to-Right

sin

Sinhala, Sinhalese

Left-to-Right

sio

Siouan languages

Left-to-Right

sit

Sino-Tibetan languages

Left-to-Right

sla

Slavic languages

Left-to-Right

slk

Slovak (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

slo

Slovak (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

slv

Slovenian

Left-to-Right

sma

Southern Sami

Left-to-Right

sme

Northern Sami

Left-to-Right

smi

Sami languages

Left-to-Right

smj

Lule Sami

Left-to-Right

smn

Inari Sami

Left-to-Right

smo

Samoan

Left-to-Right

sms

Skolt Sami

Left-to-Right

sna

Shona

Left-to-Right

snd

Sindhi

Right-to-Left

snk

Soninke

Left-to-Right

sog

Sogdian

Left-to-Right

som

Somali

Left-to-Right

son

Songhai languages

Left-to-Right

sot

Southern Sotho

Left-to-Right

spa

Castilian, Spanish

Left-to-Right

sqi

Albanian (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

srd

Sardinian

Left-to-Right

srn

Sranan Tongo

Left-to-Right

srp

Serbian

Left-to-Right

srr

Serer

Left-to-Right

ssa

Nilo-Saharan languages

Left-to-Right

ssw

Swati

Left-to-Right

suk

Sukuma

Left-to-Right

sun

Sundanese

Left-to-Right

sus

Susu

Left-to-Right

sux

Sumerian

Left-to-Right

swa

Swahili (macrolanguage)

Left-to-Right

swe

Swedish

Left-to-Right

syc

Classical Syriac

Left-to-Right

syr

Syriac

Right-to-Left

tah

Tahitian

Left-to-Right

tai

Tai languages

Left-to-Right

tam

Tamil

Left-to-Right

tat

Tatar

Left-to-Right

tel

Telugu

Left-to-Right

tem

Timne

Left-to-Right

ter

Tereno

Left-to-Right

tet

Tetum

Left-to-Right

tgk

Tajik

Left-to-Right

tgl

Tagalog

Left-to-Right

tha

Thai

Left-to-Right

tib

Tibetan (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

tig

Tigre

Left-to-Right

tir

Tigrinya

Left-to-Right

tiv

Tiv

Left-to-Right

tkl

Tokelau

Left-to-Right

tlh

Klingon, tlhIngan Hol, tlhIngan-Hol

Left-to-Right

tli

Tlingit

Left-to-Right

tmh

Tamashek

Left-to-Right

tog

Tonga (Nyasa)

Left-to-Right

ton

Tonga (Tonga Islands)

Left-to-Right

tpi

Tok Pisin

Left-to-Right

tsi

Tsimshian

Left-to-Right

tsn

Tswana

Left-to-Right

tso

Tsonga

Left-to-Right

tuk

Turkmen

Left-to-Right

tum

Tumbuka

Left-to-Right

tup

Tupi languages

Left-to-Right

tur

Turkish

Left-to-Right

tut

Altaic languages

Left-to-Right

tvl

Tuvalu

Left-to-Right

twi

Twi

Left-to-Right

tyv

Tuvinian

Left-to-Right

udm

Udmurt

Left-to-Right

uga

Ugaritic

Left-to-Right

uig

Uighur, Uyghur

Left-to-Right

ukr

Ukrainian

Left-to-Right

umb

Umbundu

Left-to-Right

und

Undetermined

Left-to-Right

urd

Urdu

Right-to-Left

uzb

Uzbek

Left-to-Right

vai

Vai

Left-to-Right

ven

Venda

Left-to-Right

vie

Vietnamese

Left-to-Right

vol

Volapük

Left-to-Right

vot

Votic

Left-to-Right

wak

Wakashan languages

Left-to-Right

wal

Wolaitta, Wolaytta

Left-to-Right

war

Waray (Philippines)

Left-to-Right

was

Washo

Left-to-Right

wel

Welsh (Bibliographic)

Left-to-Right

wen

Sorbian languages

Left-to-Right

wln

Walloon

Left-to-Right

wol

Wolof

Left-to-Right

xal

Kalmyk, Oirat

Left-to-Right

xho

Xhosa

Left-to-Right

yao

Yao

Left-to-Right

yap

Yapese

Left-to-Right

yid

Yiddish

Right-to-Left

yor

Yoruba

Left-to-Right

ypk

Yupik languages

Left-to-Right

zap

Zapotec

Left-to-Right

zbl

Bliss, Blissymbolics, Blissymbols

Left-to-Right

zen

Zenaga

Left-to-Right

zgh

Standard Moroccan Tamazight

Left-to-Right

zha

Chuang, Zhuang

Left-to-Right

zho

Chinese (Terminology)

Left-to-Right

znd

Zande languages

Left-to-Right

zul

Zulu

Left-to-Right

zun

Zuni

Left-to-Right

zxx

No linguistic content, Not applicable

Left-to-Right

zza

Dimili, Dimli (macrolanguage), Kirdki, Kirmanjki (macrolanguage), Zaza, Zazaki

Left-to-Right

Are the ISO 639-2 language codes case sensitive?

The ISO 639-2 language codes should be considered case-insensitive, but they are typically presented in lowercase.

What are the differences between the terminology and bibliographic codes in the ISO 639-2 standard?

In the ISO 639-2 standard, most languages use the same code for both terminology and bibliographic purposes. However, 20 languages have different codes. The reason for this difference is that libraries historically used certain naming practices, which are different from the newer naming styles we see today. While older library traditions influence bibliographic codes, the codes used for terminology are more modern, often similar to the ISO 639-1 two-letter codes. To avoid major issues when updating vast numbers of library records worldwide, some languages have alternate codes.

Example:
dut – Dutch (Bibliographic)
nld – Dutch (Terminology)

Does ISO 639-2 cover the same set of languages as ISO 639-1?

No, ISO 639-1 and ISO 639-2 represent different sets of languages. While ISO 639-1 uses two-letter codes for over 180 languages, ISO 639-2 uses three-letter codes, encompassing more than 490 languages. ISO 639-2 incorporates all the languages from ISO 639-1 and additionally includes a broader array of languages, families, and groups not specified in ISO 639-1. Hence, ISO 639-2 has a more extensive reach.

How does ISO 639-2 standard categorize languages based on their scope?

The ISO 639-2 standard classifies languages into four scopes:
  • Individual languages: Representing a single language, like English or Spanish.
  • Macrolanguages: Covering multiple related languages, such as Chinese which encompasses Mandarin and Cantonese.
  • Collections of languages: Groupings of related languages not classified elsewhere, like the 'Bantu languages'.
  • Special situations: Codes for unique content types, including undetermined or multiple languages.

Tired of manually editing translation files?

Our platform streamlines software localization for you.

Copyrights 2024 © Localizely